MS Flare or Conversion Disorder?

[all4schwa]

What do you guys think about this? Pt presents to ER with complete disuse of lower extremities and left arm. all new to this pt who has been dx with MS for five years. she has multiple admissions in the past couple of years, each time with similar s/s. . i find the girl kinda strange myself, (she's 28) i i find in her chart that docs are charting in progress notes 'poss conversion disorder' any experiences or insights for me?

[bookwormom]

I learned in school that psychiatric disorders may accompany MS, BUT, I'd make a point of doing really good assessment. Sometimes patients that seem to have 100% psychiatric problems turn out to have (in my experience) Guillian Barre or Grand Mal seizures, or whatever. I'd stay open.

[Elisheva]

There's a great forum called MS world that you might want to visit in your spare time. Some of the best people in the world. My guess would be that 25-30 percent of them would tell you that they were first diagnosed with some sort of psychiatric malady before they got their MS dx. Very sad and frustrating but not unusual.