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Dr. Suzanne O'Sullivan

๐Ÿ‘ค Speaker
813 total appearances

Appearances Over Time

Podcast Appearances

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

So Matthew had some tingling, I think, in his legs. I've forgotten exactly how it started, but it started with some disturbed sensation in his legs. And then he was reassured by his doctor who didn't find anything wrong with him, but he wasn't really reassured. And he felt that he had a more serious problem than that.

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

That tingling in his legs then progressed into a feeling that he wasn't coordinating or using his legs correctly. And that then progressed further until he got to the point where he wasn't able to walk and he was completely wheelchair bound.

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

That tingling in his legs then progressed into a feeling that he wasn't coordinating or using his legs correctly. And that then progressed further until he got to the point where he wasn't able to walk and he was completely wheelchair bound.

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

That tingling in his legs then progressed into a feeling that he wasn't coordinating or using his legs correctly. And that then progressed further until he got to the point where he wasn't able to walk and he was completely wheelchair bound.

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

Now, as a neurologist, when you examine someone who cannot move their legs at all, there is a big distinction between what you find when you examine someone who's got, say, a spinal cord disease or brain disease and something psychosomatic, because the nervous system is arranged in a very complex way. And when you can't move your legs because you've got a brain disease, it looks one way.

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

Now, as a neurologist, when you examine someone who cannot move their legs at all, there is a big distinction between what you find when you examine someone who's got, say, a spinal cord disease or brain disease and something psychosomatic, because the nervous system is arranged in a very complex way. And when you can't move your legs because you've got a brain disease, it looks one way.

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

Now, as a neurologist, when you examine someone who cannot move their legs at all, there is a big distinction between what you find when you examine someone who's got, say, a spinal cord disease or brain disease and something psychosomatic, because the nervous system is arranged in a very complex way. And when you can't move your legs because you've got a brain disease, it looks one way.

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

If it's a spinal disease, it looks another way. So when I saw Matthew, it was very obvious to me his reflexes were normal. Lots of things were normal, and yet he couldn't move his legs.

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

If it's a spinal disease, it looks another way. So when I saw Matthew, it was very obvious to me his reflexes were normal. Lots of things were normal, and yet he couldn't move his legs.

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

If it's a spinal disease, it looks another way. So when I saw Matthew, it was very obvious to me his reflexes were normal. Lots of things were normal, and yet he couldn't move his legs.

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

First of all, you can tell from the history how multiple sclerosis behaves. It's flitting symptoms that move around the body. And then basically you would be able to see certain signs in the legs, such as a particular kind of spasticity or stiffness in the muscles, reflexes that are very brisk, palpitations. patterns of sensory loss that fit with the brain.

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

First of all, you can tell from the history how multiple sclerosis behaves. It's flitting symptoms that move around the body. And then basically you would be able to see certain signs in the legs, such as a particular kind of spasticity or stiffness in the muscles, reflexes that are very brisk, palpitations. patterns of sensory loss that fit with the brain.

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

First of all, you can tell from the history how multiple sclerosis behaves. It's flitting symptoms that move around the body. And then basically you would be able to see certain signs in the legs, such as a particular kind of spasticity or stiffness in the muscles, reflexes that are very brisk, palpitations. patterns of sensory loss that fit with the brain.

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

And then when you do brain imaging, MRI, you can kind of see the result of the loss of myelin rather than the loss of myelin itself. In Matthew, none of these kind of abnormal signs when you examined him, apart from not being able to move his legs, everything was normal. And brain imaging, etc, was all normal. It was very obvious that this had a psychological cause.

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

And then when you do brain imaging, MRI, you can kind of see the result of the loss of myelin rather than the loss of myelin itself. In Matthew, none of these kind of abnormal signs when you examined him, apart from not being able to move his legs, everything was normal. And brain imaging, etc, was all normal. It was very obvious that this had a psychological cause.

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

And then when you do brain imaging, MRI, you can kind of see the result of the loss of myelin rather than the loss of myelin itself. In Matthew, none of these kind of abnormal signs when you examined him, apart from not being able to move his legs, everything was normal. And brain imaging, etc, was all normal. It was very obvious that this had a psychological cause.

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

So the question Matthew would have for me is, how could I not be able to move my legs? You're telling me my nervous system is healthy. Why can't I move my legs?

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

So the question Matthew would have for me is, how could I not be able to move my legs? You're telling me my nervous system is healthy. Why can't I move my legs?

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

So the question Matthew would have for me is, how could I not be able to move my legs? You're telling me my nervous system is healthy. Why can't I move my legs?

Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Suzanne O'Sullivan (on over diagnosis)

Well, I think it's very unbelievable for people.