TIA symptoms but ALL tests come back negative for anything

I had that happen to me in 07/24. Had classic symptoms including total right side paralysis, but they couldn’t find anything per CT scan and almost sent me home. But the neuro resident was a smart lady and, as an after thought, remembered that there is 1 rare type of TIA that only shows up on an MRI and had it done. And wouldn’t you know, holla…there it was!

Hi @neisie13 , I had an episode like this just yesterday, and I experienced almost exactly the same thing. I was reading when suddenly my brain stopped understanding the words I was reading. A little while later, I experienced the same thing while driving — I could see the pedals, but I couldn’t understand which one I was supposed to press, whether it was the brake or the accelerator.

I went to the ER and everything seemed normal. They did some neurological checks, including tests with my hands, to see if I was having an acute episode, and they told me I wasn’t.

I was wondering if you’ve found out anything else since then, or if they’ve done any tests that were particularly relevant or helpful in figuring out what happened to you. I’d really appreciate hearing about your experience.

@carmenb6 I am sure you were so scared, especially since it later happened again while you were driving. I actually went to the neurologist because of another issue but as soon as he did a history and heard what I had gone through with the reading episode he focused in on that. I had an EEG of my brain, I had an MRI and two MRA's which look to see if the arteries to your brain are obstructed. Every single test came out normal. He even had me take a baby aspirin until the results were back. So there is no answer and a few weeks ago I was having lunch with my husband and I could not get the right words out. I would have a thought but I could only get the first couple of words out and then I was stuck. He asked me if I wanted to go to the ER but I said no, they already ran every test possible. It passed after about 5 minutes. I have no idea what is going on either!!! Did they do a CAT scan or an MRI to at least rule out anything major?

@neisie13 honestly, yes, I was really scared, so much so that I had a small accident with my car. I wasn’t hurt, but it really scared me. This had never happened to me before, and what caught my attention the most was what happened when I was reading.

I went to the ER, and they did some tests to check my physical strength and make sure I had normal control of both my arms and both my legs. They only did a blood test. They haven’t done a CT scan or an MRI.

It seems very strange to me. It has only happened to me once, yesterday. I don’t know if it will happen again, but since it has happened to you several times, I really think it’s something that should be investigated further. There must be some way to find out what’s causing it.

Thank you so much for sharing your experience.

@carmenb6 Do you have a primary care doctor? I'm not sure if you need a referral from him/her to see a specialist but maybe you can get a referral to see a neurologist to at least do the basic tests to rule out anything major. It took me several months to even get in to see the neurologist but my primary care doctor had already ordered an MRI. Well, I wish you good luck in your search for a cause and please keep in touch. Let me know how you are doing and if you were able to get any more testing done.

@neisie13 Yes, I need to talk to my primary care doctor so they can refer me to a neurologist, although I don’t think they’re going to take me seriously. Maybe I’ll just let it go for now, and if it happens to me again, I’ll try to see a neurologist.

I’ve felt the need to look for information and see if this has happened to other people, like you. Thank you so much, and if you have any updates or new information, please let me know too! Thank you, and I hope it never happens to you again!

My husband experienced what we thought was a TIA after a flight to our son‘s house in Florida. He was rushed to the hospital and CAT scan and MRI all came out negative. The Neurologist final concern was that he possibly has.
Posterior circulation disease.

My husband’s initial CT scan of head/neck showed that he had a small clot from one of his posterior arteries … could it be that possibly you also may have had a blood clot that traveled? Fortunately, for my husband, he has a strong heart, and this stopped the blood clot. We are currently following up with cardiologist and a neurologist.

@carmenb6 It is quite a scary thing and some doctors don't seem that concerned and others automatically think it's a TIA and run tests so you are not heading towards a stroke. I've had both reactions from doctors. I will mention my lasted incident when I see my primary care doctor next week but I doubt he'll do anything since I just had a complete work up this year. Yes, let's hope you don't have any more episodes but it will be interesting to hear what your doctor says about referring you to a neurologist. Keep in touch!

@susanpmadigan Did they put your husband on a low dose of aspirin as a precaution? What were his symptoms when he got off the plane? I had an MRA which is like an MRI but of the arteries leading up to the brain and also an MRA of the arteries in my head and all was clear and so was the MRI so my symptoms are still a mystery!!! I hope your husbands upcoming visits will give him ore information.

Hi Neisie
Yes, they put my husband on a baby aspirin every day and also he did need to go on statins. He probably should have been on them 10 years ago however he always complains that he has leg cramps. Now he is fine because he is drinking a lot of water. I make sure of it each day lol and my husband did have the MRA of his head and neck as well. All they saw on these scans was that he did have little TIAs that were very old so they were non-significant. When we got off the plane and went to my son‘s house, he woke about five in the morning complaining of a terrific pain in the back of his neck and blurry vision and could not move both arms. He also felt nauseous . I really got scared and thought it was a stroke, but the results showed that there was no stroke, and the doctors came to the conclusion that his arteries may have been clogged so therefore he is now on Repath and satins and baby aspirin. My husband did say that by drinking a lot of water he does not have the cramping from the statins. I hope this is a help to you.