I know they say MS is not considered to be inherited, per se. I've also read that it effects people of Scandinavian decent and living in a northern climate past puberty.

That said. My son was born in WI, but has lived in SoCal since he was 6 mos. His docs never mentioned MS and attributed sx to his depression.

What are the odds? If it's not MS, what is it?

If it's not inherited, I'd like to know why I have a cousin (dad's 2nd cousin...I think) who has MS. She had her first exacerbation tthe same week that her brother became a quad in a swimming accident. (he dived headfirst into a lake, broke his neck)

Their mom had two kids in the hospital with different forms of paralysis at the same time.

Why are you looking for something wrong other than what is diagnosed...depression

MS has not been proven to be hereditary. Even if it was hereditary that does not mean family members will inherit it. Everything about MS is still a therory. It is *thought* that there could be a genetic componet to MS but this has not been proven.

I am the only one on both sides of my family who has MS. There are others where MS does seem to run in their family.

I believe in not looking for something that may not be there.

Symptoms of depression:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/dep...ction=symptoms

What sx is he having?

MS is such a hard disease to dx.......is your son seeing a doctor that specializes in MS?

sorry to hear your son is having issues right now.

MS is a DX of exclusion since so many things can mimic it. Lyme's, B12 deficiency, etc. Even with leisons typical of MS on my MRIs, I still had to get the round of tests, including bloodwork, to make sure nothing else was going on. Depression, if it's bad enough, can also play a number on the body. But only an experienced psychologist can say for sure if that's going on.

And even with having other immediate family members on both sides with MS, I was still blindsided by my own DX. I'm the only other one with it. My brother doesn't, and neither do my cousins. I do believe genetics has a small part to play in it, but I also strongly believe in environmental triggers.

Hope he finds the help he needs to get to the bottome of things., no matter what's going on.

I dont know a single relative with MS. not one! I know relatives with lupus, and lyme, and anemia and other issues, but not one with MS.

There are more than 100 diseases that can mimic MS, inluding the lesions. From Sjogrens to lupus, to lyme, to porphyria and even some vitamin def stuff.

They have found those who live above the middle line of the USA are more likely to develop things like MS and other autoimmune diseases, but are finding a vitamin D link to be one of the common threads. High up in the USA we dont get enough bright sunshine to make enough vit D to prevent many things. Then we start to slather on sun screen and block it even further.

I hope your child gets a work up to include the standard blood tests for things like Vit D, Vit B12, anemia, and other issues that can contribute to MS like sx. until all the answers are in, it can be painful to guess, and while you may suspect certain things, I do hope you are able to rule them out.

Depression can be very serious in young folks. Please seek help. He doesnt need to suffer alone. Your a good parent to speak out and seek answers.

I think that some types of MS are hereditary. My DD has MS and seems to be following the same lighter MS that I had, in my 30s and 40s. I'm SPMS now and with her LDN, I'm praying she never gets here.

I, however, agree with Snoops, that you should do all you can to look into the possible depression. You can have both illnesses, you know.

Best wishes for your DS and you.

No one on Jim's side was diagnosed with ms. He's the only one we know of. I do sometimes let that little voice creep in and worry me about my boys but I slap the crap out of it and move on.