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You wrote: >Date: Tue, 9 Apr 1996 12:11:03 -0400 >From: "Stephen B. Duff" <[log in to unmask]> >Subject: My First Visit to a Neurologist > >Hi all: > >Well, visit number one to the neurologist was not very informative. Stephen: The following is something I wrote to a friend about my diagnostic adventure... "My family practice Dr. (PPO/HMO) recorded the symptoms and asked me to come back in a month. After that month he referred me to a neurologist in Orlando. The neurologist interviewed me and performed a battery of movement tests. He then immediately sent me out for a full blood workup and a 3 hour MRI series. When I reported back to the neuro. the tests had ruled out a whole bunch of uglies... MS, stroke, arterial sclerosis, Wilson's Disease, occluded arteries to the brain, etc. That was some comfort, but there was still no answer. The suggestion was "come back in three months". In retrospect, I think the Orlando neuro. was unwilling to make the diagnosis he suspected. He was frustrated that I couldn't better articulate my symptoms and I was frustrated with his frustration. After 3 months things were still slowly getting worse so he suggested I go up to Shands (U of Florida)in Gainesville. He finally alluded to the possibility of Parkinsons the last visit I had with him before going to Shands. With some idea what to look for I went off on a typical "engineer-type research project". It didn't take too many books on the subject of Parkinsons for me to realize I had all the symptoms of Young-onset PD (Parkinsons Disease). I drove the two hours up to Gainesville on a weekday. Dr. Greer's staff spent about 2 hours interviewing me to prepare a history. Then Dr. Greer reviewed the history and the results of all the previous tests. After a very few other movement related tests he made the PD diagnosis in absence of any other disease explanation. The only fully conclusive way to diagnose PD is with an autopsy and he and I both agreed that this was probably a little radical at the present time." My prayers go with you. Its a slow, sometimes frustrating process. Rich Thompson