I was told about 2 years ago that I had white matter disease and that it had gone dormant.?

Question

I really don't know what that really is. What kind of symptoms would I have if it ever comes back? Can anyone enlighten me a little on the subject. I also have a spinal cord injure from back in 2002. Would this have something to do with this? My spinal cord liked a 1/4 of an inch severed into. I have trouble with leg spasms , motor skills, stiffness in neck and balance trouble. I also have a plate in my neck.

Answer 1

White matter disease affects memory interfering with the ability to make decisions. It affects the white matter of the brain so causes other issues as well. The main symptom signifying it's return would be inability to make decisions. Other symptoms would be problems with balance, incontinence, spasticity, hyperreflexia (exaggerated reflexes) and ataxia (irregular muscle actions). Mnay of these symptoms are what you are experiencing.

The disorder is thought to be inherited as a recessive trait that becomes activated via a head injury or infextion. Your spinal cord and head are the core of the central nervous system so your injury could have been what triggered the disorder.

For more info, please read this article. This is the only one I found that was not too techinical: http://voiceoffreedom.org/archives/health/brain/whitematterdisease.html