Sometimes you might even feel nothing at all - a sense of numbness - and this is OK too. Some people feel relieved (if you have been desperately seeking an answer to worrying symptoms), you might also feel anger, sadness, loneliness, denial, guilt - all these feelings and others are completely normal. There are no wrong or right responses to an MS diagnosis and your feelings can change from morning to night. In cases like this, it can take your doctor longer to diagnose, simply because it is not so common. When MS symptoms are first noticed after the age of 50, it is known as late-onset MS. If MS is diagnosed between infancy and 18 then it is called paediatric MS, and this is much less common. The average age of MS diagnosis is 34 years, but teens and children can also get diagnosed.Įarly symptoms and signs of MS usually begin between the ages of 20 and 40. With this evidence, you do not have to wait for another relapse to start treatment. The McDonald criteria advise that every person receives an MRI scan as part of the diagnosis, as lesions can even be found in someone with no symptoms (radiologically isolated syndrome).Īnother sign of MS within the criteria is the presence of oligoclonal bands in the spinal fluid, (immune system proteins that show inflammation within the brain and spinal cord) which is evidence of DIT - MS activity in the past. When you visit the doctor with neurological symptoms that could be a first indication of MS (CIS), you will often have an MRI scan and lumbar puncture. The main observation for an MS diagnosis, setting it apart from other neurological conditions, is the evidence of damage to the central nervous system (CNS) in different places (Dissemination in Space - DIS) and at different times (Dissemination in Time - DIT). The aim is to give an MS diagnosis as early as possible to give you access to the right treatment quickly. The first set of criteria was published in 2001 and it is revised regularly by a panel of MS experts with up-to-date data. The McDonald criteria is a tool used by clinicians to provide an accurate MS diagnosis.
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