Optical Neuritis

[matak]

Hello everyone,

My name is Marina and I need an advice regarding my mother's situation. My mom currently lives in Russia. About 8 months ago my mom had a surgery where they had to remove her kidney due to its failure and benign tumor that was found. She fully recovered from it, but about a month after she was released from the hospital, she has noticed that a vision in her left eye seemed blurry. She was hoping that it will go away and didn't go to the doctor right away. About 2 month after that, she fell and injured her shoulder which later required a surgery as well. After her shoulder surgery, as soon as she got home, she noticed blurred vision in her right eye also. Now, it's been several months and her vision seems to be the same. She went back to the hospital where doctors did many tests and MRIs and they diagnosed her with optical neuritis. They said that it could be of the first symptoms of MS. She's been getting a lot medication, but so far no results at all.   She can't work, or go anywhere by herself. I am devastated and don't know how to help her at this point. She is coming to the US next week and i hope there is something doctors can do her here. Please, any advice will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[jensequitur]

I hope so too!  Will your insurance cover her needs?

[matak]

Thank you for resonding to me post. I am from Reno, Nevada. I agree that US may be not the best choice, but it's worth a shot. Unfortunately, the health system is Russia is hopeless and corrupt and the quality of treatment is very poor. So, i am hoping that here she can receive what she deserves.

[jensequitur]

Optic neuritis is caused by an inflammation of the optic nerve.  It's often one of the first signs of MS.  I can't remember if it's a definite sign, but it's rare that it appears without MS activity.

Unfortunately the US isn't really ahead of the game in terms of treatment for MS.  We're like everybody else - we have a selection of DMDs (disease-modifying drugs, like Copaxone, Rebif, Avonex and Betaseron) but they only slow down progression, not stop it.

Actually, I'm only assuming that you live in the US!  Where are you located?