Yes, MND symptoms can seem to come and go in the very early stages, often appearing mild, intermittent, and easily mistaken for normal aging or fatigue, but the disease is fundamentally progressive, meaning symptoms will gradually worsen and spread over time, not truly resolve. Initial signs like muscle twitching, cramps, fatigue, or weakness might be inconsistent, but they signify ongoing nerve damage that eventually becomes more pronounced and impacts daily activities, as described in resources from MND Victoria and Healthdirect.
Some of the more common conditions that can mimic MND include:
Tests that may be requested by the medical team to help diagnose MND include:
The latency from symptom onset to diagnosis in MND documented in the literature has shown little improvement or change over the last 40 years and figures range from 10.6–17.5 months3–13.
Your first symptoms of MND that you notice can be mild, such as: stumbling because of weakness in your leg muscles. difficulty holding and gripping objects because of weakness in your hand muscles. slurred speech and swallowing difficulties because of weakness of your tongue and throat muscles.
Beginning Stages of Motor Neurone Disease (MND)
Individuals may notice symptoms such as muscle weakness, twitching, or cramping, typically affecting one limb or a specific muscle group. These symptoms may initially be mild and intermittent, often mistaken for normal aging or fatigue.
Tests used to help diagnose MND include: blood tests. tests to check how well your nerves are working. an MRI scan to help rule out other conditions that affect the brain and nerves.
Weakness. Progressive muscle weakness is a feature of MND, but can be variable in its severity, progression and distribution. In the lower limbs it may present as foot drop, a tendency to trip, difficulty in rising from chairs and excessive fatigue on walking.
Other conditions that can be confused with ALS include:
Several people talked about their tests as a 'process of elimination'. Progression of symptoms over time provides evidence to support the diagnosis. Many of the people we talked to had been experiencing symptoms for months or even years before finally getting a diagnosis.
The list of existing factors is as following: bulbar features—dysarthria, dysphagia, sialorrhoea or excessive salivation and tongue fasciculations; limb or muscle features—focal weakness, falls, foot drop, muscle wasting, muscle fasciculations or twitching, cramps, sensory impairment and muscle stiffness; respiratory ...
Symptoms of MND
Early symptoms can include: weakness in your ankle or leg – you might trip, or find it harder to climb stairs. slurred speech, which may develop into difficulty swallowing some foods. a weak grip – you might drop things, or find it hard to open jars or do up buttons.
Like MRI, blood tests cannot diagnose MND, but are useful in some cases to exclude other conditions that may resemble MND.
There are certain symptoms of anxiety that can mimic some of the symptoms of ALS, including fatigue, irritability, and difficulty concentrating. However, the main sign of ALS is muscular weakness, followed by breathing difficulties, and speech problems.
The exact cause of Motor Neurone Disease (MND) is unknown, but it's believed to result from a complex mix of genetic predisposition, environmental factors (like toxins or intense exercise), and lifestyle influences, with most cases being sporadic (no known cause) and only 5-10% being familial (inherited). Researchers are exploring potential triggers such as genetic mutations (like C9orf72, SOD1), heavy metals, pesticides, viruses, and issues with cellular waste disposal or nerve signaling.
There is no one test or procedure to ultimately establish the diagnosis of ALS. It's only through a clinical examination and series of diagnostic tests, often ruling out other diseases that mimic ALS, that a diagnosis can be established.
In 1 out of 4 cases, the first MND symptoms will affect the muscles used for speaking and swallowing. These problems might initially affect the muscles used for speech and swallowing. Increasingly slurred speech (dysarthria) is usually the first sign of this type of MND. It might be misdiagnosed as a stroke.
Progressive supranuclear palsy is a rare brain disease that affects walking, balance, eye movements and swallowing. The disease results from the damage of cells in areas of the brain that control body movement, coordination, thinking and other important functions.
While it can be hard to tell nerve and muscle pain apart, the sensation that is felt along with a medical history and recent activity can help with diagnosis. Nerve pain is stabbing, tingling, and sharp while muscle pain is dull and steady or crampy and spasmodic.
Get medical care right away or go to the emergency room if you have muscle pain with: Trouble breathing or dizziness. Extreme muscle weakness with problems doing routine daily activities. A high fever and stiff neck.
Despite MND not directly affecting sense such as thermoregulation, people with MND may experience temperature control issues. There are several different products that can be implemented to help control temperature. These include: Layers of clothing.
Unlike UMNs, LMN lesions present with muscle atrophy, fasciculations (muscle twitching), decreased reflexes, decreased tone, negative Babinsky sign, and flaccid paralysis. These findings are crucial when differentiating UMN vs.
The Gold Coast criteria's (GCC) requirements for ALS diagnosis are (1) a documented history or repeated clinical assessments that demonstrate progressive motor impairment after a period of normal motor function; (2) the presence of both upper and lower (clinical or EMG) motor neuron signs in at least one body region ( ...
It is a relatively rare condition that is most common in people over 50, but adults of any age can be affected. A person's lifetime risk of developing MND is one in 300.