Early ALS symptoms

[sbennes]

Hello all-

I am a 35 yr old male. I have been having some very concerning neurological phenomnea that I would like to have examined.  These symptoms begain approx. two weeks ago. Specifically, fasiculations in legs, feet and at times, other parts of the body.  Simultaneously, I have  a subjective feeling of weakness in the right leg: somedays it seems to involve the entire leg, sometimes just the quads and at others, the calf muscle only.  Curiously, this feeling of "weakness" also presents when my leg is at rest and not being used. I have done all the crazy hyperchondriac tests for strength such as squats, calf raises, etc. but there appears to be no objective appreciation in differences of strength. There seems to be no gait disturbance either.

To further mix up the picture, I have had the same feeling of "weakness" and associated twitches in the rt. leg 9 monthes ago which resolved after a week or so.  Even more mysteriously, two yrs. ago I was  experiencing many fasiculations, myoclonus in the rt. leg and positve Babinski (which was later negative on another exam) and "weakness" in rt. leg.  This, too resolved over a period of time.

Can one experience sensations of weakness in different, alternating aspects of the leg, even when at rest?  Does the ALS pt. initially notice sensations of weakness or do they notice subtle changes in wieght bearing activity?

Does the above presentation sound like a progressive neuromuscular disease like ALS?
Thanks for your time.

[childrenrtreasures]

My grandpa recently had an MRI done to "rule out" ALS. They were convinced that's what he had. The good news was that he doesn't have ALS but the bad news was that he had two degenerated discs in his neck and the vertebrae were pressing on his spinal cord.

They told him to avoid all but the slightest activity since even a minor fall could cause the spinal cord to be severed and result in paralysis. He had surgery yesterday and came home today. The surgery is considered successful but they said it may take a year for all of the symptoms to abate.

He had a variety of symptoms but the most obvious to everyone was that his legs "jumped" and twitched frequently. He had a great deal of weakness, tingling and pain also.

It might be wise to get an MRI and EMG to rule out anything obvious.

I have autoimmune thyroid disease and during my hyperthyroid episodes get back and leg spasms as well as muscle cramps and tremors.

Kelly

[dalfoot]

I am currently going through a simalar experience now. I have had muscle twitches all over for about six weeks. This has been accompanied by sorness. I am seeing a top Neuro in New York who says he is not worried about me after seeing me for an office examination. However he is going to give me an EMG to be sure. He said I have BFS but without weakness and good muscle tone I should be ok. I try to recognize that logically this occurred after over exercising and tremendous stress because of my Wife's heart surgery but I still manage to worry. Hopefully after the EMG it will put my mind at ease.

[Skycaptain1618]

Hi all. I'm a 20 year old female and have been experiencing fasciculations for about 3 1/2 months. There were a few other symptoms (tingling,stuttering, buzzing), but they only lasted a couple of days. I haven't recieved a diagnosis from my neurologist yet, but I was wondering about possible causes. My mother had MS, and has since passed away, so that's been my first concern.....but from what I've read, it's probably not the case. However, I did have epiplepsy as a child; When my present symptoms began, I experienced phantom smells, sounds, and sensations, which I know can be a result of epilepsy. Could epilepsy be the cause of my fasciculations and tremors? Also, there was some drug/alcohol use in my past....could my symptoms have resulted from minor brain damage? Forgive me...I'm a worry wart...I'd appreciate any help I can get.

[motheroftwo]

Happy birthday ;-)

I had several emg's, please see my last emg question posted on this site http://www.medhelp.org/perl6/neuro/messages/33872.html

loret, yes the cold does affect me & others with als.

Merry Christmas & Happy new year to y'all.

[merciful]

WOW! I read your previous posting. This is so young to have this diagnoses. I would definately look into a second opinion. Maybe it's a mitochondrial condition or something which could be a little less severe. You must be beside yourself with worry.

Take care

[merciful]

I will check it out. Thanks for the good wishes!

take care
merciful