diagnosis

Lyrics and Loving Myself: Rediscovering My Lost Voice

ā€œMost of the time, the greatest rewards come from doing the things that scare you the most. Maybe you’ll get everything you wish for. Maybe you’ll get more than you ever could have imagined. Who knows where life will take you? The road is long, and in the end, the…

More Than 50 Shades of Gray

Spring is rapidly approaching. Itā€™s warming up outside. The trees are starting to bloom. And inside our home, I am once again plotting to refresh the place. Out with old decorations, and in with the new! Declutter that closet! Donate the table and chairs that still look great because you…

Imaging Brain Metabolites May Help Diagnose, Monitor MS

A new imaging technique called magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging, or MRSI, could be useful for diagnosing and monitoring multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a small study. “If confirmed in longitudinal clinical studies, this new neuroimaging technique could become a standard imaging tool for initial diagnosis, for disease progression and…

New Machine Learning Algorithm Could Help in Diagnosing MS Sooner

A new machine learning algorithm ā€” designed to analyze healthcare records ā€” could help in diagnosing multiple sclerosis (MS) sooner by identifying patients’ symptoms earlier. The algorithm, devised by scientists at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF), was described in a study titled “Embedding electronic health records…

MS and Fertility: Conflicts of the Heart and Mind

ā€œRock bottom is the end of what wasnā€™t true enough. Begin again and build something Truer.” ā€” Glennon Doyle The first of our four pregnancy losses were our twin daughters in 2013, which happened nearly halfway through my pregnancy. Three years later, the first symptoms appeared that would eventually would…

Submissions Now Open for 2022 MSAA Art Showcase

The Multiple Sclerosis Association of America (MSAA) is calling for submissions for its 2022 MSAA Art Showcase, an initiative that celebrates the work of artists who haveĀ multiple sclerosis (MS). The showcase, which began in 2009, gives MS patients in the U.S. the opportunity to share their…

Innodem, Novartis Team Up on Trial Testing Eye-tracking Technology

Innodem Neurosciences is teaming up with Novartis Canada on a breakthrough clinical trial to evaluate if Innodemā€™s digital biomarker eye-tracking technology can monitor disease progression in people with multiple sclerosis (MS). The trial will test Innodem’s “easy-to-use, affordable technology,” which works using visible light, with no special infrared…

Pain, Fatigue, Anxiety Common in First Year After CIS/MS Diagnosis

People newly diagnosed with clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) or multiple sclerosis (MS) frequently experience pain, fatigue, depression, and anxiety in the first year after diagnosis, a new study finds. Fatigue was reported by almost two-thirds of new patients, and half experienced pain. Many individuals experienced multiple symptoms simultaneously,…

MS Poses Challenge to Dating, Meeting People

Meeting people and dating is challenging for people with multiple sclerosis (MS), but the experience of dating is highly personal and influenced by past experiences and beliefs, a small study reveals. The study, ā€œDating with a Diagnosis: The Lived Experience of People with Multiple Sclerosis,ā€ was published in…

MS Symptoms Often Apparent Years Before Diagnosis

Many people with multiple sclerosis (MS) start experiencingĀ symptoms of the disease several years before being diagnosed, a new study suggests. While it has long been known that people with MS tend to seek medical attention more frequently in the years before diagnosis than those without the disease, there…

Canadaā€™s MS Walk Returns for Awareness Month

The Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada‘s (MSSC) MS Walk fundraiser is still on for this month ā€” May is MS Awareness Month in Canada ā€” although in an altered form due to the pandemic. The annual nationwide community-driven event raises funds and MSĀ awareness to help battle the neurodegenerative…

What No One Tells You After a Diagnosis

A multiple sclerosis diagnosis is hard to process. Our body that we once knew so well suddenly feels untrustworthy. The truth is that the malfunctioning of our body is a traumatic event. We never expected it to do these things.Ā  We are…

NIH Awards $2.3M to Bioengineer to Advance Diagnosis, Treatment of Autoimmune Diseases

TheĀ National Institutes of HealthĀ (NIH) awarded a $2.3 million grant to a bioengineer at Indiana Universityā€™s Luddy SchoolĀ of Informatics, Computing and Engineering to improve diagnosis and treatment of autoimmune diseases, such as multiple sclerosisĀ (MS). The project aims to find ways to detectĀ disease-associated cells based on their ability…

Paramagnetic Rim Lesions Showing Promise as Diagnostic Marker of MS

Inflammatory lesions within the brain, called paramagnetic rim lesions, visible on imaging scans may improve the accuracy of aĀ multiple sclerosis (MS) diagnosis, especially when used in combination with other imaging-based biomarkers, a Ā study reported. If corroborated in larger future studies, these white matter lesions may serve as an early…

Accepting a New Diagnosis

I have long preached the merits of acceptance. In embracing my MS, I have mitigated much of the accompanying fear. This modus operandi has enabled me to live alongside my disease as opposed to clashing with it. While ideal, it is becoming increasingly difficult to follow my advice. Two…

Advice for helping a loved one through an MS diagnosis

Last updated April 25, 2023 In June, the U.K. marks Carers Week, which got me thinking about how a chronic illness diagnosis often affects a patient’s entire family.Ā  Most often, patients are the focus of a diagnosis, and the people around them are almost forgotten. The…

New Nanosensor May Help to Diagnose MS at Early Stages

A new tiny sensor is able to detect antibodies against myelin,Ā the protective coating of nerve cell axons whose destruction is a hallmark ofĀ multiple sclerosisĀ (MS), potentially allowing for a diagnosis in early disease stages, researchers report. It also offers the possibility of distinguishing multiple sclerosis from neuromyelitis optica, a…

That Time When MS Left Me at a Loss for Words

Editor’s note: This week’s column is inspired by the forum topic “7 Strange and Unusual Symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis” from Nov. 8, 2019. Post your concerns, questions, or experiences in the comments below or at the original forum entry. People with MS often share the symptoms that prompted…

Mix of Broad and Specific Language May Help in Talking About MS

Using a mix ofĀ broad diagnostic terms and more disease-specific ones may help physicians and patients to better communicate symptoms of autoimmune disordersĀ like multiple sclerosis (MS) that are not always obvious or easy to explain, a study reported. The study, “Using autoimmune strategically: Diagnostic lumping, splitting,…