I am a 21 year old male, who has been suffering from a lifetime of migraine headaches, vision problems (e.g: diplopia, strabismus), fine motor skill problems, sensory integration issues, neck pain, central sleep apnea and a circadian rhythm disorder. I have had these issues my entire life but they seem to have gotten significantly worse in the last 5 years or so, to the point that I could no longer function normally. I was recently told that my symptoms closely mirrored those of someone with a chiari malformation and had an upright MRI done to evaluate if this could be the cause of my problems. My cerebral tonsils appear low as much as 5 mm in some images but this one in particular puzzles me as it seems to show a distinct but faint shape extending down from my cerebellum almost 17 mm. I am puzzled as to what this is and if it could be causing some of my symptoms. Any help that could be provided in interpreting the image would be greatly appreciated.
Welcome to the group, Alexander. I hope that you are able to find your answers and support from members here and also where you are. I do think that your questions are better suited to discuss with a radiologist/neurosurgeon/neurologist while you are in the room with them and the images. Folks are getting paid enough to answer your questions and help to guide you in your care. Unfortunately, Chiari members are not trained in MRI reading (I think that I saw a skull in the image!) and it would be disappointing if well-meaning comments steered you in the wrong direction for education and treatment of your condition. Good luck in navigating though your health care team and finding relief from your symptoms. Do check out other posts for similar symptoms and if others have found solutions.
Hello Alexander, unfortunately no-one here is qualified to interpret imaging results or diagnose you so to comply with site guidelines the Moderators have removed your image. Members are welcome to share personal experience and information picked up as lay-people but for any form of image review or explanation we must refer you to your own medical team. We trust that you understand. Kindest, JulesG on behalf of the Moderator Team
All right, I understand for the sake of caution why the image was removed; however, I am somewhat confused as to why this post which also is asking for help interpreting an image was permitted.
http://www.chiarisupport.org/forum/topics/simple-question-about-my-brain-mri-rearview
I'm not familiar with that Feb 2014 post as it was made long before I joined the community but, if you look carefully, it has clearly had a number of replies removed because they must have been "diagnosing not describing".
Do check out our Doctors List if you are looking for a Chiari Specialist. And in terms of getting some ideas about what could be causing your symptoms if it's not Chiari this excellent presentation by Dr Oro is a great place to start: What Other Than Chiari Could It Be?. There is also alot of information and resources in our section Chiari Info for Members (on the main navigation bar).
I'm also including a link to our Site Etiquette page.