Symptoms and Sibling

[jwbryan81]

I've recently been having issues with my right hand/arm.  It has been tingling and almost numb feeling.  I've also gotten what I've heard called "trigger finger" where some of my right fingers will cramp and lock up.  I've reached out to my doc who is working on an appointment.  

My sister was diagnosed with MS about 8 years ago.    Am I being overly concerned?  Is there any new research based on genetics for siblings? I'm just looking for some words of advice before I speak to my doc.

[supermum_ms]

Hi and welcome,

You are more likely experiencing one of the more common causes even with a sibling dx, from my understanding siblings and other close relations (mother/father, brother/sister/twin) only have a slightly higher increase and the further removed genetically the less relevant any family members medical condition becomes. Keep in mind that MS isnt a genetically inheritable type of disease, so the odds are overwhelmingly higher for someone dx to be the only person in their family to be dx with MS but having said that, whilst its less common to have multiple family members dx with MS, it does still happen...

The most common causes of hand pain/tingling/cramping are cervical radiculopathy, carpal tunnel syndrome, and rheumatoid arthritis but there are lots of other causes that would get on your most likely causes list befor a neurological condition like MS so try to stay open minded at this stage.

Hope that helps a little......JJ