TIA symptoms but ALL tests come back negative for anything

Never going to find the rare person with a fixable PFO if you don’t check

I agree 100%. My doctor talked me into getting it done but still no problem there.

I find that often with TIAs one test that is not done is an ECHO with bubble study. The bubble study identifies the rare person with a small hole in the heart that can let clots from the body travel to the head and cause a stroke or TIA. It is uncommon but many feel all TIA patients without a known cause should have one

We have a similar situation as about 15 years ago my husband had what I thought was a TIA. He went to the ER and was released the next day after tests were inconclusive. He was told it could be MS. A neurologist ruled that out. He did not have any more (evident) episodes but had one in the middle of the day about five years ago. Another trip to the ER and more inconclusive tests. It has been a confusing and frustrating journey since then. We finally went to Mayo where they diagnosed them as TIAs - probably been having them for years. His official diagnosis now is CAA.
I do not have much advice or a solution- except to say you are not alone. Think about doing to a Mayo Clinic for a comprehensive evaluation. Find a doctor that seems to care (it is hard. )

And you might try a chiropractor. Regular adjustments from my chiropractor helped to lessen the severity of my migraines.

Peace be with you

So sorry to hear this is happening to your wife. I was (as well as all the associated doctors I’ve come in contact with) as dumbfounded as you and is why I shared my story. Although others have also shared similar stories, I’m still in the dark about it all. It was somewhat comforting to know that I wasn’t the only one. Still hoping some grad student looking for something to write a thesis on someday will find these threads and investigate (at the universities expense of course) these situations. At any rate, thankyou for sharing your story. I hope you guys find some answers soon.

Hi, I’m glad I found this thread. My wife has had these Tia symptoms recently, but all tests come back negative. She had the first, and most severe episode Aug 9th, 2025 and went to the ER. They sent her home after an CT and MRI and in 2 days she had another episode and went back to the ER. They admitted her and she had 5 episodes in one day, but then appeared to get better with doxycline as they thought it was Lymes. After 5 days as an IP she was looking like she was improving, so they sent her home. She seemed to get better but after a few days at home she started to feel bad again and has episodes once every 2 or 3 days. She’s had a constant pressure headache after the 1st episode and the headache is now spreading to more areas of the head and ears and even teeth now. We’re very scared and have received no effective treatment. My wife can’t do any activity for longer than 5 mins before she has to take a break because she gets so tired. Nobody seems to know what is causing this. They just ruled out all the serious things from the MRIs, spinal tap, bloodwork, and neuro tests eeg and Emg. We saw a stroke neurologist today with no answers and are now referred to a headache clinic and a general neurologist. If anyone has had a treatment, natural or medical, please let me know, we’ll try anything within reason. It’s scary bc she was perfectly healthy prior to her first episode and now she can’t do much and is scared when she has these episodes.

Actually my family doctor had labeled it an ischemic stroke which makes sense because I have Throphilia a blood cutting issue. I have brain damage from aneurysms and three craniotomy’s in 2000. So thinking is a problem, brain fog, memory issues, concentration, verbal communication comprehension. Last October there was a noticeable decline in my thinking and concentration so I requested a referral to a neurologist from family doctor. Contacted their office and was told if I wanted Migraine help they could get me right in but if I wanted an. appointment for cognitive issues six months , so I made the six month appointment and waited. Finally went to appointment and started talking about cognitive isdues. He stopped me and said oh no this appointment is for Migraines if you want to discuss cognitive issues make another appointment. I was stunned and furious. I have frontal lobe damage so anger is not a good look for me to express. I exchanged emails pointing out his error and he still wanted to deflect blame. I looked up practice and they are a Botox factory for treating migraines. Explained issue with neurologist with my family doctor and she did a referral to the same practice, different doctor. Their scheduling staff called and said they needed to do a MRI, well I have multiple metal clips in my brain and a MRI will kill me. I left a message for the doctor office saying exactly that and have not heard from them since. I gave up locally and have a telehealth appointment with neurologist at Cleveland Clinic. My faith in doctors is at an all time low, I’m planning to retire at 62 instead of 70 as planned. I have been treating my migraines with herbal tea, supplement and neck and spine adjustments. It’s done wonders almost completely headache free. They are more tension than migraine. I’m still trying the neurologist route and all the other health issues but my patience is running out. Thanks for your suggestions

@hakablue i believe you’re playing with fire. A TIA or TIA like symptoms should alert you to something’s going on in your brain that’s not normal. Doctors don’t know everything about the human body but they do a pretty good job and learn more every day. If you’re considering dumping medicine for homeopathy try doing both simultaneously instead.

I had two episodes two days in a row. First day-sudden drooping of left eye, vision going in and out, and sudden headache. I lost about 10 minutes time and then I was fine and didn’t worry about it till the next morning when again left eye dropped, unable to move left side, fuzzy vision this time and headache with total confusion. Went to ER this time and thought I was explaining everything but the medical staff didn’t seem to understand. They put me in an ER room, was given a neuro physical test that I passed. They sent me for a CT scan w/contrast and it showed I have been having chronic strokes(TMI)’s. I was given something for pain and sent to waiting area to see if medication worked. It did and they sent me home with no follow up instructions about strokes. I’ve had cognitive decline for a year now and still cannot get into a local neurologist. I’m not real impressed with the medical system right now and considering holistic treatments. I have a few other things going on. But that has been my experience with TMI.

Has this done as long as any other test you can think of by a neurologist and cardiologist. That’s why they left the final results as a crcptogenic stroke. The second one I had, I was at the hospital within 20 minutes of start and doctors all agreed I was having a stroke as I did not drink or so drugs. After extensive testing they could not find any evidence though. I have a LOT of cardiologists and neurologists very stumped. But found out through this forum that I’m not the only one this has happened to.