Parathyroid Disease

[Jennagain]

Although my signs and symptoms are pretty classic MS (I was told) and most everyone thought I had MS, lack of evidence on MRI is causing Dr. to look in new direction. My doctor called me in yesterday so I could be checked for parathyroid disorder. Apparently the increased calcium can cause muscle and neuro symptoms.

Also waiting for EMG to see if this is peripheral nerve disease. There is one that can be relapsing and remitting but it is much rarer than MS.

Now thinking MS is often the first go to diagnosis as it is so common. Unfortunately docs don't always consider other avenues when MS fails to meet the test. Too bad...maybe I wouldn't be here looking 8 years later.

[its2much]

Wow

What tests have been done for parathyroid disease?

[Poppy7402]

Are the doctors thinking CIDP (chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy) for the relapsing peripheral nerve disease, or something else?

[Jennagain]

Tests for parathyroid

The tests are just simple blood tests where they look for the parathyroid hormone and calcium. Apparently, if you have this condition it can cause high amounts of calciumwhich I think is what causes the symptoms.

Have had so many different tests, but never this one. Would be great if it was something this simple.

[Jennagain]

CIDP

Yes CIDP is on the list of possibilities. It strongly mimics MS, but strangely enough you never see it listed as one of the considerations when MS is being ruled out. You think it would be given it is neurological and can relapse and remit. Like MS it causes weakness and sensory issues. Unfortunately it is rare (I think 1 in 100,000) so maybe a lot of Dr's don't know about it or even want to consider it.

Told my doctor that it's unfortunate doctors only want to consider more common diseases, but than abandon other possibilities when the diagnosis is not so obvious. She said it's because when people's symptoms remit, doctors don't continue their search. That is definitely what happened to me.

[Poppy7402]

Apparently CIDP is considered the 'mirror' of MS, one is central, the other is a peripheral disease.

A friend of mine has CIDP and for a long time they couldn't work out what was wrong with him. When he first got sick they thought Guillain-Barre as CIDP is basically the relapsing form of this.

I don't know where you're located but if you do get a diagnosis, Professor Gareth Parry is basically the world expert on this disease. He works between the US and NZ and would be well worth seeing.

[Jennagain]

Parathyroid tests were fine. Still waiting to see neuro for nerve conduction tests.