I have a friend that has been sick for a long time with all the MS symptoms that we generally have. She found a neurologist that dx her with MS.

Well this past week she was so ill, that they sent her to the ER for bloodwork. Her ANA was high, she said the doc told her she has Lupus. I asked her, does that mean you don't have MS? She said she was so upset, that she didn't ask any questions.

What do you all think? Since most of the symptoms are the same or similar, and now a positive ANA.

Can you have both MS and Lupus?

You can have both MS and Lupus.

She needs to ask about the MS diagnosis and be clear as to whether she met all the criteria for a clear diagnosis. MS has distinctive lesions on the brain.

Lupus is Rheumatoid while MS is Neurological

Sorry about your friend, Daisy. It really sucks if she has both..

Yes, you can have both MS and Lupus. Several years ago my son had a girlfriend whos mother has both MS and Lupus.

Thanks guys....

She has two lesions on the brain, but she also has had years of severe migraines. I do not know where her lesions are located. She doesn't ask questions or request paperwork. We are very different, I want a copy of every note, lab, or test that I have had.

She is scheduled to see a rheumatolgist in the next week or so.

I have MS, my older sister Lupus. daisy I agree 110% with copies of everything.

Yes, you can have both MS and Lupus. And I may or may not be an example of that.

A positive ANA does not automatically mean Lupus as well as other autoimmune disease. There is a series of tests that need to be run as well to determine what is going on and to make a dx. The results take some time. I know many people who have had a positive ANA and upon further testing, ended up not having anything. I had a negative ANA but am positive for one of the Lupus tests that I had done. Go figure. But, it is my understanding that is not uncommon with Lupus either. I have not been to the rheumy to confirm that dx - I go after the holidays for that appointment. But, I will say that the symptoms I am having that caused me to get all these blood tests done are not the same symptom I get with my MS. They are 2 separate sets of symptoms that sometimes occur at the same time. But, like MS, Lupus can be difficult to diagnose and can take quite a while to dx.

I wish your friend the best and hope she starts feeling better soon.

During periods of high MS lesion acivity the ANA scores will be elavated.

In fact it has been proposed that the high ANA might be a good indicator of "active" lesions.

It would be a lot cheaper than a MRI.

jackD


Neurology. 1997 Sep;49(3):857-61.

Frequency and significance of antinuclear antibodies in multiple sclerosis.

Collard RC, Koehler RP, Mattson DH.
SourceDepartment of Neurology, University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, NY, USA.

Abstract
In a prospective sample of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) we found a high frequency of antinuclear antibodies (ANA), 22.5%, confirming results from previous studies. ANA occurrence did not correlate with gender, age, duration of MS, MS course, or disability in either the prospective and retrospective samples of MS patients.

In 16 patients with MS tested at two time points, ANA occurrence did correlate with MS disease activity.

This suggests that the high frequency of ANA in MS reflects ongoing immune dysregulation.

Comment in
Neurology. 1998 Aug;51(2):650.
PMID:9305354[PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

thanks Jack...

that makes sense then. during her MS workup all her bloodwork was normal including the ANA, but during this severe period of arm pain and weakness when they drew blood, her ANA was high.

Time will tell, oh how I wish there was a test for MS!!

I have MS, and my elder sister (and niece) has Lupus, too.

Ugh - I hate to think of poor people trying to cope with both Dx. I hope your friend is not facing the pair of them.

Encourage her to document and EVERYTHING.

Cheers

Lyn