Brain MRI

[Alisak38]

I had a MRI of the brain w/o contrast.  "There are a few bright foci within the periventricular white matter on FLAIR and T2 imaging without corresponding signal abnormality on diffusion imaging."  I have had headaches and numbness and tingling down my arms, and also some balance issues.  I guess my question is could this be an early sign of MS?  What should be my next steps?  Should I request a cervical MRI to see if there are lesions there also?  

[Alisak38]

Thank you for your reply  Alex.  Unfortunately I have to go to clinic where I see a nurse practitioner.   I do not have insurance and in the midst of waiting for a hearing date for disability, due to fibromyalgia, arthritis, etc.  Through the hospital here I can get free MRI's, xrays, etc.  I have really been down on my luck and this is just the icing on the cake so to speak.  

[HVAC]

Are you seeing a Neurologist? The Neurologist can do a simple neurological exam, reflexes and such and determine if you need a cervical MRI. The Neurologist can tell from a neurological exam if and where you have damage to to your nervous system. They are very good at it.  A MRI neither rules MS in or out. A MRI can show "Lesions" it is up to a Neurologist to determine what the lesions might be. It is a piece to a puzzle. There are many Neurological disorders which behave like MS and over 30 Mimics of MS. A good Neurologist will get a detailed history, do a neurological exam and go from there. If they suspect MS they will do a lot of blood work to rule out mimics. They may do other tests which point to US or away from MS. Most watch the patient over time. They may re examine and repeat brain MRIs every six months to a year. When my first MRI showed lesions I was checked every six months for two years. My Doctor tested me for everything. Finally in my case there was enough to be diagnosed with MS. Some people who come to this forum are diagnosed with MS and some have other illnesses. Usually people find a cause but the causes run the full spectrum.

Alex