relapse?

hi all,

i was diagnosed with a lesion at c6/7 in feb 2010. last octoberi had a 3 week period of my left leg feeling warm whenever i sat on/leant against anything that was obviously cold. a few weeks later i had an episode of ‘banding’ a tightness around my chest/back. would these episodes be classed as relapses does anyone think?

many thanks for your time

sue x

Hi Sue, am not an MS expert as I am relatively new to all of this still, but have a look at this link below;

http://ms.about.com/od/multiplesclerosis101/a/relapse_or_not.htm

If your symptoms are new, and are not worsening of existing symptoms, and you have been experiencing them for over 24 hours, then it may be a relapse.

Sometimes old symptoms can flare up again if you have been overdoing things, have been ill, or can even flare up due to heat.

Have you had those symptoms back in November or are they new and happening now?

I would contact your MS nurse for advice.

I just read this, which may help.

The Official Definition of a Relapse

The official international definition of a relapse is “a period in which a person with MS experiences an acute worsening of function that lasts for at least 24 hours, usually lasting for several days or weeks, followed by an improvement that lasts for at least one month.” To get even more specific, the symptoms associated with a relapse will develop over a couple of days, remain the same for three to four weeks, then slowly get better over a period of about a month.

Yes, they sound like relapses. The sensory one would probably not be considered very important but the hug is quite specific to a spinal lesion so if you saw a doctor at the time who verified it, the neuro may “count” it. (The neuro may count it anyway - at least enough to scan you again to look for new activity.) Karen x