Thanks for the info. I had a hard time tracking the entire link (my comp is crazy though ), but did at:

http://www.medilexicon.com/medicalne...?newsid=127415

I'm not really surprised by this as certain conditions can mimic or mask MS, especially if we are using meds for those problems on top of everything else. They want to SEE those tell-tale lesions, which aren't always apparent in the first several years.

It'll be SO helpful when they finally get a blood test to dx MS.

"The study found that it took one to 10 years longer for people who were obese, smoked, or had physical or mental health conditions to be diagnosed with MS compared to people without such conditions. The study also found that the more medical problems a person with MS had, the more severe the disease had become by the time they were diagnosed.

"People with vascular problems or who were obese were about one-and-a-half times more likely to be moderately disabled at the time of diagnosis compared with those who had MS but did not have any heart or weight problems," said Marrie. "We also found people who had a mental disorder or any muscle or joint problem along with MS were nearly two times more likely to be severely disabled at the time of diagnosis."

That's interesting.


Cherie