Management -There is nothing huggable about MS Hug.
Auto-suggestion - Close your eyes and picture different images that represent the
sensation, then visualize doing something to get relief.
Increase Fluid Intake - Try lukewarm herbal tea for relaxation and plenty of water,
trapped wind will cause discomfort and pain and may be mistaken for MS hug.
Massage - Manual lymph drainage massage can be helpful, however be sure to learn
the correct method. Massage is not always appropriate and may cause harm. (Always
consult your health professional).
Pressure - Place the flat of the hand where possible onto the area and press fairly
hard.
Always wear Loose Clothing - Tight fitting garments prevent the body from breathing
or losing heat.
For some heat helps, for others it makes the problem worse (Uthoffs Phenomenon).
Try a warm bath, warm / hot shower or heating pad to see if this provides some relief.
If you feel an MS hug beginning and heat may exacerbate the situation, try cooling
off and resting. (lying flat may be better than sitting when resting).
Antispasticity Medications:
Lioresal - Baclofen
Valium - Diazapam - Lorazepam
Xanaflex - Tizanidine
Neuropathic Pain Relief Medications:
Lyrica - Pregabalin
Neurontin - Gabapentin
Ibuprofen
Advil
Motrin
Note
Many of the medications used to treat “MS hug” are very addictive, use only with
caution and careful monitoring by your health professional.
The Intercostal Muscles.
Tiny muscles between each rib which hold the ribs together, giving the ribcage some
flexibility while assisting in movements, such as forced expiration.
The intercostal muscles fill up the spaces between the adjacent ribs. They are arranged
in three sets, external, internal and innermost internal, eleven pairs of each.
MS Hug - Girdle Band Sensation -Caused by a lesion on the spinal cord MS hug is
classified as a neuropathic pain (paresthesia) which refers to any abnormal sensation.
The sensation itself is the result of the intercostal muscles going into spasm. The
symptoms vary from person to person and they may also vary in the same person at
different times and positions during the day or days.
The intercostal muscles stretch from the back of the chest area around to the front
encircling the rib cage, when the nerve signals to the intercostal muscle system
are disrupted they may:
Contract when they should be relaxing.
Relax when they should be contracting.
Or the muscle sets may contract or relax at the same time.
Your muscles are in a constant state of readiness (tonus) and although muscles work
in pairs and pairs work in groups, to create movement, a muscle can only contract
while its opposing muscle becomes partially relaxed under a controlling nerve signal.
A steadying tension is always maintained in both muscle pairs (tonus) to maintain
stability. The tension maintained in the relaxing muscle prevents the contracting
muscle from overreacting.
When the nerve impulse to the muscle groups are disrupted the relaxing muscles receiving
the nerve signals to maintain an opposing tension no longer work effectively in maintaining
the equalising tension required to maintain stability. The muscles opposite partner
will then over-react causing the symptoms known as MS Hug.
Symptoms may occur:
At waist level or chest level, it is unusual to experience MS Hug as high as the
shoulders or neck or below the waist.
It may focus in one small area or go all the way around the body.
Symptoms worsen with fatigue or stress.
Symptoms presents itself as waves lasting seconds, minutes, hours or may even persist
for longer periods of time.
Symptoms vary from person to person and are often described as:
Burning pain.
Constricting sensation.
Dull pain.
Intense pressure.
Sharp pain.
Tickling.
Tingling
Difficulty breathing can be so severe that it is often perceived as a heart attack
or panic attack.
A tight band around the chest accompanied by pins-and-needles sensations, stabbing
pains down into the abdomen and around the lower back. The back hurts to the touch
and the abdomen feels too tight to put anything into it. Feeling constricted makes
attempting to draw deep breaths difficult if not impossible, and yet when effort
is made to breathe deeply more shooting pains may be experienced.
It is a miserable symptom and very underrated and not well understood.
It causes serious pain that can be difficult to accurately describe the sensation.
Tests should also be undertaken to discount any underlying causes such as:
Gallbladder problems.
Gastrointestinal disorders.
Heart problems.
Inflammation of the cartilage between the ribs.
Lung disease.
Trapped Wind.
While MS hug can be a sign of an exacerbation, it can also be a sign of a pseudoexacerbation,
a temporary worsening of symptoms caused by an external factor, such as:
