Transverse Myelitis, A Simple Guide To The Condition, Treatment And Related Diseases

By Kenneth Kee

Transverse myelitis is a neurological disorder caused by inflammation across both sides of one level or segment of the spinal cord.
Attacks of inflammation can damage or destroy myelin, the fatty insulating substance that covers nerve cell fibers.
This damage causes nervous system scars that interrupt communications between the nerves in the spinal cord and the rest of the body.
Most patients will have only one episode of transverse myelitis; a small percentage may have a recurrence.
The segment of the spinal cord at which the damage occurs determines which parts of the body are affected.
a. Nerves in the cervical (neck) region control signals to the neck, arms, hands, and muscles of breathing (the diaphragm).
b. Nerves in the thoracic (upper back) region relay signals to the torso and some parts of the arms.
c. Nerves at the lumbar (mid-back) level control signals to the hips and legs.
d. Finally, sacral nerves located within the lowest segment of the spinal cord relay signals to the groin, toes and some parts of the legs.
Damage at one segment will affect function at that segment and segments below it.
In patients with transverse myelitis, demyelination usually occurs at the thoracic level, causing problems with leg movement and bowel and bladder control, which require signals from the lower segments of the spinal cord.
Transverse myelitis often develops following viral and bacterial infections and are related to autoimmune diseases such as SLE and Sjogren’s syndrome.
Transverse myelitis represents the first symptom of an underlying demyelinating disease of the central nervous system such as multiple sclerosis (MS) or neuromyelitis optica (NMO).
Symptoms of transverse myelitis include a loss of spinal cord function over several hours to several weeks.
What usually begins as a sudden onset of lower back pain, muscle weakness, or abnormal sensations in the toes and feet can rapidly progress to more severe symptoms, including paralysis, urinary retention, and loss of bowel control.
Although some patients recover from transverse myelitis with minor or no residual problems, others suffer permanent impairments that affect their ability to perform ordinary tasks of daily living.
The spinal cord MRI will almost always confirm the presence of a lesion within the spinal cord, whereas the brain MRI may provide clues to other underlying causes especially MS.
No effective cure currently exists for people with transverse myelitis.
Treatments are designed to reduce spinal cord inflammation and manage and alleviate symptoms.

TABLE OF CONTENT
Introduction
Chapter 1 Transverse Myelitis
Chapter 2 More Facts about Transverse Myelitis
Chapter 3 Treatment of Transverse Myelitis
Chapter 4 Sarcoidosis
Chapter 5 SLE
Chapter 6 Multiple Sclerosis
Chapter 7 Sjoren Disease
Epilogue

• Language: English
• Publisher: Kenneth Kee
• Release date: Oct 4, 2016
• ISBN: 9781370095131

Kenneth Kee

Medical doctor since 1972.Started Kee Clinic in 1974 at 15 Holland Dr #03-102, relocated to 36 Holland Dr #01-10 in 2009.Did my M.Sc (Health Management ) in 1991 and Ph.D (Healthcare Administration) in 1993.Dr Kenneth Kee is still working as a family doctor at the age of 74However he has reduced his consultation hours to 3 hours in the morning and 2 hours inthe afternoon.He first started writing free blogs on medical disorders seen in the clinic in 2007 on http://kennethkee.blogspot.com.His purpose in writing these simple guides was for the health education of his patients which is also his dissertation for his Ph.D (Healthcare Administration). He then wrote an autobiography account of his journey as a medical student to family doctor on his other blog http://afamilydoctorstale.blogspot.comThis autobiography account “A Family Doctor’s Tale” was combined with his early “A Simple Guide to Medical Disorders” into a new Wordpress Blog “A Family Doctor’s Tale” on http://ken-med.com.From which many free articles from the blog was taken and put together into 1000 eBooks.He apologized for typos and spelling mistakes in his earlier books.He will endeavor to improve the writing in futures.Some people have complained that the simple guides are too simple.For their information they are made simple in order to educate the patients.The later books go into more details of medical disorders.He has published 1000 eBooks on various subjects on health, 1 autobiography of his medical journey, another on the autobiography of a Cancer survivor, 2 children stories and one how to study for his nephew and grand-daughter.The purpose of these simple guides is to educate patient on health disorders and not meant as textbooks.He does not do any night duty since 2000 ever since Dr Tan had his second stroke.His clinic is now relocated to the Buona Vista Community Centre.The 2 units of his original clinic are being demolished to make way for a new Shopping Mall.He is now doing some blogging and internet surfing (bulletin boards since the 1980's) startingwith the Apple computer and going to PC.The entire PC is upgraded by himself from XT to the present Pentium duo core.The present Intel i7 CPU is out of reach at the moment because the CPU is still expensive.He is also into DIY changing his own toilet cistern and other electric appliance.His hunger for knowledge has not abated and he is a lifelong learner.The children have all grown up and there are 2 grandchildren who are even more technically advanced than the grandfather where mobile phones are concerned.This book is taken from some of the many articles in his blog (now with 740 posts) A Family Doctor’s Tale.Dr Kee is the author of:"A Family Doctor's Tale""Life Lessons Learned From The Study And Practice Of Medicine""Case Notes From A Family Doctor"

Book preview

Transverse Myelitis,

A

Simple

Guide

To

The Condition,

Treatment

And

Related Diseases

By

Dr Kenneth Kee

M.B.,B.S. (Singapore)

Ph.D (Healthcare Administration)

Copyright Kenneth Kee 2014 Smashwords Edition

Published By Kenneth Kee at Smashwords.com

Dedication

This book is dedicated

To my wife Dorothy

And my children

Carolyn, Grace

And Kelvin

This book describes the Transverse Myelitis, Treatment and Associated Diseases or in vernacular terms

(What You Need to Treat Transverse Myelitis)

This eBook is licensed for the personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each reader.

If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy.

Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Introduction

Ode To Transverse Myelitis

Transverse myelitis is a neurological disorder

Myelitis refers to inflammation of the spinal cord

Attacks of inflammation can damage or destroy the nerve myelin

The nervous system interrupts the body from communicating

Symptoms begin as a sudden onset of lower back pain, muscle weakness

There are sensations such as burning, tingling and presence of paresis

The most common cause is damage to nerve fibers of the spinal cord from viral infections

The other causes may be bacterial complications and abnormal immune reactions

Diagnosis is with NeuroMyelitisOptica IgG which may indicate Transverse Myelitis

Cerebrospinal fluid contains more protein than usual and an increased number of leukocytes.

Treatments are designed to reduce spinal cord inflammation

Plasma exchange or corticosteroids may be used to try to salvage neurological function

-An original poem by Kenneth Kee

Interesting Tips about the Transverse Myelitis

A Healthy Lifestyle

1. Take a well Balanced Diet

2. As with many disorders of the spinal cord, no effective cure currently exists for people with transverse myelitis.

Treatments are designed to reduce spinal cord inflammation and manage and alleviate symptoms.

a. Physicians often prescribe anti-inflammatory corticosteroid therapy soon after the diagnosis is made in order to decrease inflammation and hopefully improve the chances and speed of neurological recovery.

Corticosteroid medications that might be prescribed may include intravenous methylprednisone or dexamethasone (usually for about 5 days;

In some cases, oral prednisone is used for a period of time afterwards.

b. In severe cases that do not appear to respond to corticosteroid treatment, other therapies such as plasma exchange or drug therapies may be used to try to salvage neurological function.

c. General painkillers may be prescribed for any pain the patient may have.

d. And bed rest is often recommended during the initial days and weeks after onset of the disorder.

Following initial therapy, the most critical part of the treatment for this disorder consists of keeping the patient’s body functioning while hoping for either complete or partial spontaneous recovery of the nervous system.

3. Keep bones and body strong

Bone marrow produces our blood

Eat foods rich in calcium like yogurt, cheese, milk, and dark green vegetables.

Eat foods rich in Vitamin D, like eggs, fatty fish, cereal, and fortified milk.

Eat food rich in Vitamins B and C such as green vegetables and fruits

Zinc and other minerals are important to the body

4. Get enough rest and Sleep

Avoid stress and tension

5. Exercise and stay active.

It is best to do weight-bearing exercise such as walking, jogging, stair climbing, dancing, or lifting weights for 2½ hours a week.

One way to do this is to be active 30 minutes a day at least 5 days a week.

Begin slowly especially if a person has not been active.

6. Do not drink more than 2 alcohol drinks a day for a man or 1 alcohol drink a day for a woman.

Alcohol use also increases the chance of falling and breaking a bone.

Alcohol can affect the neurons and brain cells.

7. Stop or do not begin smoking.

It also interferes with blood supply and healing.

Cigarettes contain more than forty types of hazardous and possibly cancer causing chemicals which can harm the smokers and those around them.

Chapter 1

Transverse myelitis

What is transverse myelitis?

Transverse myelitis is a neurological disorder caused by inflammation across both sides of one level or segment of the spinal cord.

The term myelitis refers to inflammation of the spinal cord; transverse simply describes the position of the inflammation across the width of the spinal cord.

Attacks of inflammation can damage or destroy myelin, the fatty insulating substance that covers nerve cell fibers.

This damage causes nervous system scars that interrupt communications between the nerves in the spinal cord and the rest of the body.

Symptoms of transverse myelitis include a loss of spinal