Your doctor looks for a sudden appearance of symptoms that signal
nerve damage in the brain and/or spinal cord. Although these symptoms usually begin in someone who is younger than age 40,
older people between ages 40 and 60 also are affected sometimes. On examination, your doctor will look for signs of nerve
damage, including vision problems, difficulty in walking or in coordinating body movements, muscle weakness; trembling hands
or loss of sensation.
Your doctor may suspect MS based your age, the history of
sudden onset and repetitive attacks of neurological symptoms, and the results of physical and neurological examinations. To
confirm the diagnosis of MS, your doctor will order a magnetic resonance (MRI) scan of your brain and/or spinal cord to check
for MS plaques, areas of inflammation and myelin sheath destruction. Other possible diagnostic tests include a detailed eye
examination by an ophthalmologist (physician who specializes in eye problems), a lumbar puncture (spinal tap) to remove spinal
fluid for laboratory testing; or evoked potential studies to check for abnormalities in specific nerve pathways.
Informatin compliments of: http://www.ninds.nih.gov/health_and_medical/disorders/multiple_sclerosis.htm
