There should be a dx criterion in the NMSS web site....that ought to help you both out.

Lesions can be caused by other things, that's why 1 lesion doesn't get a dx....

Good Luck and for her sake, I hope it is something curable.

Jules,

I was diagnosed with no lesions. If it hadn't been for the LP, I'm not sure any one would have thought of MS. Because I had positive LP, ON, and within a few days of steriods, my foot started buzzing (two "whatevers" separated by time and space) I got the "official" diagnosis.

It was about two years after diagnosis before anyone (doctor at UCSF) said they "thought" there *might* be 1 small lesion...(or possibly an artifact).

I haven't had an MRI since, so I don't know if anything else has shown up. But I am proof positive...you CAN have MS with negative MRIs.

Jules, there are doctors that are more aggressive than other doctors....

They would probably wait for a second attack anyway, and by then perhaps more lesions would show up.

Cherie

That is kind of what I was thinking which makes me sad if it causes her to delay starting medications if she is so inclined.

Like Bird said some Doctors are more cautious. I'm really glad mine wasn't although my case seems to have been a slam dunk. Is that a good thing?

I've had three recordable attacks, and still no dx....some are VERY conservative. Problem for me is that I didn't see the same doctor each time, so its my word. Guess I could get all my records and keep them handy.

Hugs to your friend!

Greenjeans you are a more patient woman than I am! I'd be causing such a fuss they would probably diagnose me just to shut me up.

Thanks for the kind wishes, I'll let you know how it goes when she has the LP.

I was diagnosed primary progressive with one lesion in my cervical spine, and one tiny lesion in my brain (right periventricular). I have had numerous lumbar punctures, all negative. My MRIs have been absolutely stable (no more lesions, no less) since the first one I had in May of 2003.

Since I'm primary progressive, I have never had an attack, only a slow steady progression of disability. In 2003 I first presented with a slight limp in my right leg. Five years later, my right arm and leg are entirely useless, and my left side is weakening as well. I also have the usual bowel and bladder issues.

I've had my diagnosis verified by several different neurologists (including some of the biggest names treating multiple sclerosis), all of whom comment that although my presentation is highly atypical, they would still classify me as PPMS since I don't really fit any other disease model. Nevertheless, I am still uncomfortable with my diagnosis, and question it daily.

Whatever it is that I have, it sucks, and it's getting worse.

Bear in mind too that they would want to see the right size, shape and location for the lesion, and rule out a differential dx first. There is some pretty good information in the links I attached here about that:

http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/thread164-3.html

Cherie

Great links, Cherie. I have bookmarked them, thanks!

With all I read, it still seems to me that in a young person who has clear blood work and no immune type condition such as HIV or chemo-induced issues that lesions on the brain are a pretty good indicator of MS.