How is Multiple Sclerosis Diagnosed?
There is no specific diagnostic testing available yet for multiple sclerosis, but the doctors perform a series of tests to rule out the condition of multiple sclerosis. The doctors make a differential diagnosis for identifying the certain condition of the patients with multiple sclerosis. In the process of differential diagnosis, the doctors start ruling out other conditions or diseases that might have the same signs and symptoms as the symptoms of multiple sclerosis. The doctors like to establish a multidisciplinary team for the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis patients. The interdisciplinary team of doctors, after knowing about the signs and symptoms of the patient, likes to start with a rigorous medical examination and family history to see the cause of the disease.
Neurological Exam
If a patient shows some signs and symptoms that might indicate the damage to the central nervous system, then the doctors perform a rigorous neurological examination. The doctor collects all the information about the symptoms and the severity of the signs that the patient is having and evaluates the possibility of the patient either he has multiple sclerosis or not. Then, the doctor conducts a thorough neurological examination in which the doctor checks the mental ability and the emotional condition of the patient by asking a series of questions from the patient or by asking them to repeat some words or a series of numbers. If the doctors detect any out of the order thing in the examination, they order a series of detailed testing in order to confirm the presence of multiple sclerosis in the patient.
In the neurological examination, the doctor further performs some simple activities with the patient in order to detect any kind of injury to the 12 pairs of nerves in the central nervous system. The doctors check for the coordination, senses, strength, and reflexes of the patient by checking the sense of smell, vision, sense of taste, eye movement, sense the position of arms and legs, sensation in the face and scalp. The doctors also check the voluntary movements by the muscles by pinpricking in the limbs to check if the patient feels any pain or vibration in the area or not. A detailed neurological exam is not a part of the regular physical examination. Still, the doctors only perform it when they detect some related symptoms of multiple sclerosis in the patients. The doctors check for all the reflexes of the patient, and this detailed neurological examination may take up to 1 to 2 hours easily.
If all the tests show that the patient’s functions are within the normal ranges, then the doubt of the possibility of having multiple sclerosis does not remain anymore. But if there are abnormal findings in the testing having evidence of nervous system dysfunction, such as weakness, coordination problems, blindness, balance problems, or having changes in the sensation, then the person goes for further scanning to identify the type of multiple sclerosis he or she may have.