Diagnosis

MS can affect almost anything the brain, spinal cord and optic nerves control. This lesson describes the common symptoms, how often they occur, and why they differ so much between people and from one day to the next.

There is no single test for MS. A neurologist combines the story of the symptoms, an examination, MRI and sometimes spinal fluid, and confirms MS only when no other disease explains the findings better. This lesson explains how the 2024 diagnostic criteria do that.

Spinal fluid shows whether the immune system is making antibodies inside the nervous system. This lesson explains how the tests work, how to read their patterns and how the 2024 diagnostic criteria use them.