hello
I was diagnosed with PD about a year ago and have seen the neurologist once and the Parkinson nurse once since then nothing I have a shake in my right arm pains in my legs and really bad ache in my left shoulder, also have some very vivid dreams
I also find it hard sometime to find the right words they don’t seem to want to come out very easily, but I had an MRI scan 7 weeks ago and my wife phoned the Parkinson nurse to find out what was going on, PD nurse finely phone me and said all was OK with the scan, but still wanted me to increase my medication, am I right in saying that the MRI should have picked up PD if i had it
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I’ve not heard that MRI is at all diagnostic, @Peterb1951. I believe a DATScan is the normal way to diagnose PD, though I couldn’t tell you what one is.
I had a DaT scan that is what was used for the formal diagnosis , don’t know whether this is helpful
Yeah as other have stated a DATScan normally is used to diagnose PD, a MRI i used to rule out anything else … tumors etc.
Hi Peterb1954,
Yes a DATsan is the optimum way of checking for PD.
However that being said, it has been known to pgive false positives/ negatives.
There are also other methods that can confirm.
MRI scans typically cannot definitively diagnose Parkinson’s disease. PD is primarily diagnosed through clinical evaluation of your symptoms, medical history, and response to medication (like levodopa). A normal MRI doesn’t rule out Parkinson’s disease.
The main purpose of an MRI in suspected PD cases is actually to rule out other conditions that might cause similar symptoms (like stroke, tumors, or certain types of dementia). So when your nurse said your scan was “OK,” that likely means they didn’t find any alternative explanations for your symptoms.
Your described symptoms - tremor in your right arm, leg pain, shoulder ache, vivid dreams, and word-finding difficulties - can all be consistent with Parkinson’s disease. The vivid dreams in particular can be a symptom called REM sleep behavior disorder, which is commonly associated with PD.
If your doctor is recommending increasing your medication despite the normal MRI, this is standard practice. They’re treating your symptoms based on their clinical diagnosis, not the MRI results.
I’d recommend discussing these specific concerns with your neurologist at your next appointment. It might help to keep a symptom diary to track how your symptoms respond to medication changes, which can provide valuable information for your healthcare team.
Dr. Insha Naim
Founder - MRI Lucknow
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