Hamstring Issue / Waiting for MRI - Multiple Sclerosis Message Board

saint90ms · 11-16-2008, 02:04 PM

I'm kind of new to the boards and I look forward to anyone providing some information to me that would be helpful. Since about July, I noticed that my right leg has been giving me a lot of discomfort such as a constantly tight hamstring, can't bend down without feeling a nagging pulling sensation in the back of my leg, weakness, once in a great while I get tingling in the calf. My leg feels tired when going up stairs all the time. I'm 40 years old and really quite healthy so all of these issues are quite bothersome. I get pain in my hip also when bending over and or walking. They ruled out sciatica. I'm having an MRI next week. I also get tightnes around my diaghram every a.m. upon wakening and can't take a deep breath for the first 2-5 minutes. Feels like I've been punched in the gut area. Has anyone started out with the hamstring/leg issue? Thanks so much

MSNik · 11-16-2008, 06:14 PM

sorry to hear you are in such discomfort, but it doesnt sound like MS at all. MS is a disease of the central nervous system. Eyes, Spine and Brain...it doesnt affect our muscles, other then the occasional muscle spasm due to a nerve.
Your situation sounds more like a pinched nerve- is that possible? Have they done a CT scan on you looking for anything? Obviously an MRI might show something, what are they imaging? Is it your brain, looking for lesions ??
Id be curious to know..
anyway, i do hope you get your answers.....and Ill say a prayer that its not MS related...it just doesnt sound like it, but anything is possible!

saint90ms · 11-16-2008, 06:48 PM

I'm having a brain MRI next week, but surprisingly my Dr. just called with my cervical spine MRi results. I couldn't believe he called me on a Sunday evening. What a dr.! Anyways, he said that the MRI showed that I have streaky increased signal projecting within the cervical spinal cord. He said that the report did not have a size or length, etc. He said that sometimes the radiologists feel that they are artifactual in nature, but that he wasn't sure himself what to think. He is my primary care doctor. What do you think? Please give me yuor opinion.

MSNik · 11-17-2008, 07:06 AM

Hi there. You should be impressed by any doc who calls on a sunday night! However, unfortunately, I cant comment on what he told you. I know very little about spinal issues, and not having any lesions in my spine makes me even less able to talk to you about it.
I have over 50 lesions in my brain and black holes- if you want to discuss that!

however, what you did say he told you, doesnt sound like MS related things. Streaky increased signal? Thats not a lesion...Im not sure what it is. Im hoping someone else with more spine issues will chime in to help. Its good that you are having the brain MRI- that will help rule out or show any lesions which could also be causing your pain. By that I mean, I have so many brain lesions, that they affect things like my hands and fingers...I have no use of my left hand, and yet, the hand is FINE. ITs the signal to the nerve which is damaged..

Keep us posted and hang in there, someone will chime in.
Hugs
Nikki

Stacy1403 · 11-22-2008, 07:16 PM

Hi saint90ms,
I also experience tightness in my hamstring and calf muscle as well as occasionally in my diaphragm. On top of this I also get the tightness in my thighs and sometimes in my jaw and feet. I am told this is spasticity which is a common symptom. Some days it is worse than others. The tightness in my calves get so bad sometimes that if I sit down and stretch out my legs it will suddenly tighten up even worse where I have to wait a second and let it relax to that I can bend my knees again. I also tend to get charlie horses in my calves sometimes when I go to bed and my calf is trying to relax. It can get pretty painful. On top of the tightness I experience in the calves, etc. I also showed lesions on the spine in my MRI's.
To help this I take Baclofen to help relax my muscles a bit. I try to stretch in through those areas 2 times a day...when I wake up and before I go to bed. I also get message therapy every 3-4 weeks concentrating on my calves. The message therapy has helped a lot, but it took a few sessions to notice and I have to keep it up or it starts getting worse again. As for the diaphragm muscles tightening up, this doesn't happen very often and definitely not to the extreme you are experiencing, so I'm not sure if any of these help in that area, but they might???
I'm not sure if any of these symptoms are what you are feeling, but they sounded somewhat similar. Even if your symptoms are not caused by the same thing that causes mine, maybe the things that help me may still help you.
I hope you find out some answers. Good luck with Everything.