A to Z of MS Differential diagnosis

Differential diagnosis is the method of diagnosing a condition by excluding other possible causes of symptoms.

Some conditions cause a distinct pattern of symptoms or create biological markers in the body. Diagnosis of these conditions involves identifying these factors. This is not the case with multiple sclerosis where the individual symptoms are not unique to the condition and could be caused by one of a range of possible explanations.

Differential diagnosis is the process by which a neurologist narrows down the list of the possible diagnoses by testing for and excluding other causes of the symptoms being experienced. For instance, people will sometimes have a blood test as part of their diagnosis. There is currently no blood test that indicates if someone has MS, but several other conditions that can produce similar symptoms can be identified in this way.

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