Pain and CT scan question

[itsallinmyhead1969]

Hello everyone.  I have a couple of questions.  I do get to go for an MRI next week.  My PCP was reluctant to let me have a brain MRI and even a referral for the neuro, but luckily I got the referral and the neuro saw enough in his exam to warrant the MRI.  The reason the PCP didnt feel I needed the MRI was because he had done a CT scan on my brain already and didnt find anything wrong with it.  Do lesions show up on a CT scan?
I have had alot of muscle problems all over but pretty bad with my legs.  But recently they had gotten really worse.  I sit and lay there begging my brain to please turn my muscles loose for just a few minutes just so I can rest.  I have alot of difficulty falling asleep and then staying asleep because it goes on all night.  I have two differeent kinds of muscle relaxers and have even take them both at once and it doesnt help one bit.  I called the neuro and he said it was because of the b12 defiency and called it resless leg syndrome.  He is sending me some requip for it.  I read some pretty awful stuff people had to say about it on the webmd site and am kindof afraid of it, but am really tire of this locked up muscle stuff too.  Do any of you have this problem with the MS thing?  Its like the muscles are constently locked tight.
Amy

[itsallinmyhead1969]

I do agree the pcp is a real jerk, I really had to get on him for the referral for the neuro.  the neuro is a pretty good guy tho.  he calls me back and talks to me.  he ran alot of tests and is the one that actually found the b12 deficiency i have. the previous pcp and present pcp ignored it for 6 months plus. the neuro was very thorough on the exam. he is sending me for the MRI and for a visual evoked response test next week.  i have a follow up the week after with him.  when i called him the other day with the muscles locking up in my legs, it was because the pcp wont do anything for me, as usual.  he said that it could very well be because of the b12 deficiency causing rls.  he did tell me that i should let the pcp know about it.  he had sent the pcp a note and told them that they needed to do some thorough tests to find out what was causing the b12 problems. and then they would need to start me on the shots.  he wasn't anything like some of the evil neuros i have read about on the forum.  he has been very very kind and helpfull to me.  he may be wrong about the rls, but he knows that i am coming in a week from monday and will check me out then.  i just feel really confident in the guy, because i have been being ignored for over a year(by the pcps), and this guy was very very kind and told me that he WOULD find out what was wrong with me.  then he sent a note to the jerk pcp and tried to get them on the ball....didnt really work, but at least he tried. My medical care is through the Veterans Administration.  I am at their mercy.  They only have so many doctors.  I already changed pcps once this year.(can only change once a year)..the other one ignored me for a whole year saying that it was all in my head...because i have a depression diagnosis....but the neuro found my april blood work that showed I had a b12 count of 130...imagine that. I can really "imagine" my blood work outa whack....cool huh?  I can also "imagine" a positive ANA for about the last 4 years too.  pretty nifty huh?  Thats why the neuro says he's gonna get it figured out for me.  According to what his nurse read me, he did see some problems himself when he did his exam, and together with my symptoms he suspects ms.  Unfortunately, the MRI machine is only a 1.5T.  The radiologist said they don't have any problems finding anything though.  Hopefully everything will turn out ok.  I have a little hope since the neuro is thorough and honestly seems caring..

[Quixotic1]

Hi, Amy.  Your story is disturbing.  ess is correct.  The CT scan is useless (read that USELESS) for diagnosing MS. the CT scan can only show very large MS lesions.  But it will not show the more common smaller ones.  All neurologists agree that the CT scan is not the proper test to do if MS is being considered.

What troubles me is that your PCP thinks he knows enough about MS to dismiss it on the basis of a normal CT scan.  This means that he doesn't have a clue how little he knows.  This is a very dangerous trait for a doctor to have.

Second, he wanted to withhold a neurology consult when you were having a neurological disorder.  This tells me he cares more about controlling access to medical care than he cares about ensuring that his patients get good care.  Both of these are signs to me that he should be dumped.

I can't tell what kind of problem you are having with your legs.  From your description it does not sound like RLS, but I am not there.  I also vote for a new neurologist.  So it's two for two here.

Is changing doctors something that will be possible for you?

Quix

[essdipity]

Don't think we've met yet, so howdy!  I know you've posted before but to be honest I can't remember the details, so perhaps I'm not the best one to comment.

I CAN say some things for sure. Your PCP is way out of his element and doesn't know what he's doing if he thinks a CT scan can give info about MS one way or another. That's nutty. The only scan of use is the MRI, and the stronger power the scanner has, the better. You don't say, so have you had the MRI yet? Make sure you get a copy of the report, as well as the actual CD or films.

If you have B12 deficiency, are you being treated for it? That certainly can cause neurological symptoms, though I doubt that the muscle things you describe are seen with lack of B12. You could certainly have more than one problem going on, though. But I'm very leery of your neuro if he says that 'locked muscles' mean restless leg syndrome. RLS is exactly what it sounds like--the constant need to move your legs, especially at night. I don't have it, but I've had those symptoms caused by medication, which stopped when I went off the med. So I know what it feels like. If your muscles feel very tight so that you can't stretch them out properly, that sounds like spasticity, which often is seen in MS.

I sure can't diagnose your condition, but even as a mere layman (laywoman?) I can say you need a new PCP and a new neuro. I vote no confidence in either. However, keep doing what you need to do to get the MRI, which should be of brain, cervical and thoracic spine, with and without contrast.

In your shoes I'd take the MRI and radiology report and run, not walk to a good MS specialist.

ess