I am almost 19 yr old male with hand tremors

[Seviad]

I am 18 almost 19 and am having hand tremorsin weeks not months. I did have ADEM when I was 10 years old. I am seeing neuro next week and am 99 percent sure getting Ms diagnosis. Wondering if others had tremors as first main symptom and how fast they deteriorated. I am scared I am progressing downward fast but was fine for nine years.

[supermum_ms]

Hi and welcome,

I would strongly suggest you don't let your anxious fears mislead you into thinking the hand tremors your experiencing means you definitely have MS.....there are numerous alternate explanations and a fully recovered, childhood one off episode of ADEM would not put MS at the top of anyone's list of most likely explanations....breath!

INFORMATION:

"How is ADEM different from MS?

In most cases, ADEM occurs only once, while patients with MS have further, repeated attacks of inflammation in their brains and spinal cords.

Although children can develop MS, it is much more common in adults, whereas ADEM is more common in children.

Typical symptoms of ADEM such as fever, headache and confusion, are not usually seen in people with MS.
MRIs are helpful when distinguishing ADEM from MS.

Most patients with MS are treated with ongoing medication to prevent attacks. Patients with ADEM do not require such medication.


Can a child with ADEM ever develop MS in the future?

Although it is uncommon, children who have ADEM can later develop MS. Therefore, it is important to have ongoing follow up with your our team. Let your doctor know immediately if you notice new symptoms in your child, such as:
visual loss
weakness
numbness
loss of balance

What is the prognosis of ADEM?

Steroid treatment can reduce some symptoms and stop new symptoms from developing.

Although the long-term prognosis for children with ADEM varies, most children make a complete or nearly complete recovery, including those children with initially severe symptoms.

For most children, recovery begins within days and continues for up to one year. Some patients can have residual symptoms such as blurred vision, weakness or numbness."
http://www.childrenshospital.org/conditions-and-treatments/conditions/acute-disseminated-encephalomyelitis-adem/symptoms-and-causes

From what you've have mentioned, your saying you didn't experience any lasting neurological deficits through out your life as a result of the ADEM 8-9 years ago, and the hand tremors have happened in the last couple of weeks right?

You haven't mentioned seeing your family doctor to rule out all the more common causes but going straight to a neuro and expecting to be diagnosis with MS, based on the assumption it can't be anything else.....most children, just like you, fully recover from ADEM and there is nothing more to it than a one off event in their childhood.

The hand tremors you've been experiencing now is happening almost a decade later, its statistically more likely to have nothing to do with MS, so already being 99% sure you have MS with out any test results at all is more about what you fear is wrong with you, than your truth.....take a step back, get control of your anxiety before you worry about having a medical condition that you more likely do not have....breath!

I hope that helps.......JJ

btw MS is more commonly a slow moving condition, if you experience a rapid progression of the MS symptoms you've been reading about, it honestly is unlikely to be a neurological condition like MS.....the most common first sign of MS is visual eg optic neuritis, nystigmas, diplopia etc