Can Hughes be seen on MRI's?

[Magic]

Hi!

I am just wondering if Hughes Syndrome is seen on MRI's?

ie. Does it cause lesions?

My peripheral smears always come back with rouleaux formations. Sometimes it mentions 'large clumps'.

Is this an MS thing? Or a Hughes thing?

Thank-you for any answers or help! :)

[kingrex]

Hi!

I am just wondering if Hughes Syndrome is seen on MRI's?

ie. Does it cause lesions?

My peripheral smears always come back with rouleaux formations. Sometimes it mentions 'large clumps'.

Is this an MS thing? Or a Hughes thing?

Thank-you for any answers or help! :)

Just read this in a rheumatology journal:

Brain MRI in aPL patients with ischaemic stroke
shows cortical abnormalities consistent with large vessel
occlusion. aPL patients often present small foci of high
signal in brain white matter at MRI, which are often
defined as consistent with the presence of small vessel
disease. Not only are these lesions non-specific but their
aetiology is unclear. Larger size and atypical topographic
distribution of these lesions in aPL patients may
be also consistent with demyelination and sometimes
difficult to differentiate from MRI pictures in multiple
sclerosis (MS)


rex

[Lady]

Hi Magic,
Here is some information I found on an English MS site.

Q: The main way MS is diagnosed is by MRI scan. If white plaques show up, isn't that a sure sign that it's MS?
A: No. White dots can show on an MRI with HS too. So it can be difficult to tell the difference between MS and HS from an MRI scan. These just show anatomical lesions.
Q: How well known is Hughes Syndrome amongst doctors?
A: Despite the fact that the syndrome is now 20 years old, some doctors have still not heard of it.
Lady
http://www.msrc.co.uk/index.cfm?fuseaction=show&pageid=736

[facingforward]

As the others have said, Hughes syndrome, also known as antiphospholipid syndrome (APS), can cause lesions on MRI. According to google, MRI lesions from MS and from Hughes syndrome may be hard to tell apart.

http://rheumatology.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/44/4/434

Multiple sclerosis (MS), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) are chronic, immune-mediated, relapsing–remitting disorders affecting young adults, the pathogenesis of which is still largely unknown. Neurological manifestations and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can be indistinguishable and there are no specific diagnostic tools.


http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=10670410&dopt=Abstract

When taken individually, MRI from APS patients could not be distinguished from MRI from MS patients.


I’m not a medical professional, but I’ve never heard of Rouleaux Formation in conjunction with multiple sclerosis so I googled and found the following.
http://biomedx.com/microscopes/training/LB1.html

One web-site said that rouleaux isn’t an abnormal finding in itself since it is also found in normal individuals. Another article said that Roleaux Formation is a common artifactual finding in the thick portion of almost any blood smear. (An artifact is something produced by the testing process itself.)

It’s probably a good idea to discuss your concerns about rouleaux formations with the doctor who ordered the blood test.

Wishing you well.

[Trishja]

Hi
I am new here. I have a diagnosis of APS on the blood text results together with clinical info from my GP. I have been told that I have to have a brain scan. Is this the same as the MRI everyone is talking about?
Trisja

[Abby2006]

Trisja and Magic Welcome To The Board

Abby

[terric]

Can someone explain huges syndrome to me, in simple terms? Also what causes it and can it be treated. PS white matter lesions from small vessel infarcts can look identical to the white matter lesions caused by MS. Something that really perplexes me is that if someone has demyelinating lesions from anything wouldn't the symptoms be similar?

terric

[newlyb12def]

Can someone explain huges syndrome to me, in simple terms? Also what causes it and can it be treated. PS white matter lesions from small vessel infarcts can look identical to the white matter lesions caused by MS. Something that really perplexes me is that if someone has demyelinating lesions from anything wouldn't the symptoms be similar?

terric

I'd never heard of this.

Here's a very informative link from the Hughes Syndrome Foundation:
http://www.hughes-syndrome.org/symptoms.htm

[Lady]

Hi Trishja, this is an old thread but Welcome to the forum. A brain scan could be a CT-Scan (computerized tomography scan with or without contrast media (dye)

Or it could mean an MRI with or without GAD (Gadolinium) not the same dye as in a CT scan. Both show the radiologist what is going on inside the brain.

HiTerric,
Since you asked, I have an old link and a story from a person who ended up with HS instead of MS. Here is the 2002 article (archived) in an English newspaper that is now online.

I was told I had MS - but the doctors were wrong

Jeremiah Johnston-Sheehan, a successful architect, was devastated when told he had multiple sclerosis.

But four years later, he discovered that he had been misdiagnosed.

In fact, he suffered from a treatable condition called Hughes syndrome. Recent research shows there could be thousands of people like him who have wrongly been told they have MS.

Here, Jeremiah, 45, who lives in South-East London, relates his story...

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-137608/I-told-I-MS--doctors-wrong.html

You probably could Google more on it, or read on it in some medical sites.
Lady

.

[Lady]

Trishja and Terric, more information:

What is Antiphospholipid Syndrome?

Antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) is an autoimmune disorder caused when antibodies -- immune system cells that fight off bacteria and viruses -- mistakenly attack healthy body tissues and organs.

In APS, specific antibodies activate the inner lining of blood vessels, which leads to the formation of blood clots in arteries or veins. APS is sometimes called “sticky blood syndrome,” because of the increased tendency to form blood clots in the veins and arteries.

The symptoms of APS are due to the abnormal blood clotting. Clots can develop in the veins of the legs and lungs, or in the placenta of pregnant women.

One of the most serious complications of APS occurs when a clot forms in the brain and causes a stroke.
Lady

http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/antiphosphlipid/antiphospholipid.htm



.

[terric]

I have no risk factors for stroke except factor 5 mutation. It sounds very similar to HUGHES. I guess I've had a number of tiny clots. I take plavix and aspirin. Everything makes me wonder how dxs are really made. I just find it almost impossible to draw lines between some illnesses.

terric