Lots of tests, no diagnosis

[prm]

I am a 33yo, white female, who has never smoked, or abused alcohol or drugs.  I am 5'7", and fluctuate between 105lbs and 125lbs (no intentional dieting), typically being 110-115.  I have an unremarkable health history except for odd MS like symptoms for 10+ years.  The symptoms wax and wane, and range from tinnitus, to muscle soreness, to vertigo, to balance issues, to idiopathic chest pain w/ difficulty breathing, to extreme fatigue, and most pronounced cognitive fogginess to the point of having difficulty driving, because everything is "happening too fast" for my brain to keep track of.  Last year and this year have brought a bunch of new symptoms that seem to make no sense. I have had many tests including 2 MRI's a year apart (no lesion change) and CSF (dead clear). So here is my respiratory question:

During the course of a normal day, I would take a sudden, unexpected, involuntary breath in.  This involuntary breath would be a breath that you would possibly take in voluntarily if you were taking a deep, refreshing breath.  These involuntary breaths would interrupt the normal breathing, some times occurring mid-exhalation and some times mid-inhalation.  This weird symptom would happen 3-5 times a day, during all different activities, and it was always one involuntary breath, not multiple breaths.  This happened for a few weeks and then stopped.

Any thoughts on what this might be?  Have you seen anything like this before?

I am pretty desperate, the cognitive effects of this syndrome prevent me from working.  Any ideas you have would be greatly appreciated.

[besharpone]

Wow, now I know that I am not alone. Mine started right after I had an ACDF, which is an Anterior Cervical Discectomy
and Fusion. This required the surgery to move my windpipe, esophagus, muscles and ligaments to the side in order to get to my cervical spine. I don't know if something in that process has caused my current problem. I also have GERD, but I think that it is more than just coincidence that right after having the surgical procedure that my problem startd.

[prm]

Thanks for your answer, I really appreciate you taking the time to answer.  It was another odd symptom that just didn't make sense, not much of a problem, just nonsensicle.  But while it may be related in some mutant way to a hiccup, it was assuredly not a typical hiccup.

[prm]

Oh, I forgot:

I was on no meds at the time and hadn't been for months.

[National Jewish]

What you describe sounds like a form of a hiccup (hiccough).  This could be something as simple as a hiccup or could be phrenic nerve involvement related to the MS symptoms.  While a nuisance, this is most likely not clinically significant.

[ArmourGal]

I have Hashimoto's/hypothyroidism...and your description of symptoms all would be consistent with that.  I had all of them at some point in the progression of the disease.  And yes, Hashimoto's can wax and wane, but normally settles into hypo as more damage to the gland occurs.  

I would ask for thyroid antibody testing as well as TSH, Free T4 and Free T3 (actual thyroid hormones).  The antibody testing is critical as if you have Hashimoto's (autoimmune thyroid disease), the antibodies can cause problems long before the thyroid labs go out of range.  

This is an often unrecognized and undiagnosed disease for quite a while in a person, like other autoimmune diseases.  My health has been severely compromised because my symptoms started at your age, but i wasn't diagnosed until age 48.  I just didn't know enough to ask for the right tests.
Cindi

[prm]

Thanks for your thoughtful reply, every little bit helps.

I have been seen (once) by a top rhumatologist(sp?) at a highly acclaimed teaching hospital, and at that time, had an extremely through work up for CNS lupus and fibromyalgia.  No lupus and she didn't think it was fibromyalgia.

Good luck with your health, thanks for your thoughts.