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Is Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension a Disability?

thumbnail Is Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension a Disability

Introduction

Idiopathic intracranial hypertension is a disorder where the pressure inside your skull increases. It results in headaches, vision issues, and other symptoms. It occurs when cerebrospinal fluid does not exit the skull as it ought to.

The optic nerve may enlarge if pressure on it is too great due to pressure on the brain. It could eventually harm the optic nerve, resulting in vision loss. Additionally, high pressure might damage the nerves that control eye movement, resulting in double vision.

So, as a result of these dreading symptoms of this ailment, the answer to the question of whether is idiopathic intracranial hypertension a disability an absolute yes.

Is Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension a Disease?

The failure to absorb the fluid that shields the brain and spinal cord results in idiopathic intracranial hypertension. Idiopathic intracranial hypertension is also known as pseudotumor cerebri. It builds up inside the skull and can cause severe headaches, nausea, dizziness, and even vision loss.

As the name implies, idiopathic intracranial hypertension is a condition whose symptoms resemble those of people who have tumors. When a patient has a pseudotumor, their internal pressure rises, which can cause a number of dangerous consequences.

Idiopathic intracranial hypertension is a condition with uncertain causes and continuously increased intracranial pressure. The most significant neurologic feature of idiopathic intracranial hypertension is papilledema. 

Papilledema is the ailment in which your optic nerve, which connects your eye and brain, swells. This swelling is a response to a buildup of pressure in or around your brain, which various factors may bring. It frequently serves as a red flag for a significant medical problem that requires treatment, including a brain tumor or bleeding.

Until a neuroimaging investigation can definitively rule out an intracranial mass, the presence of acute or subacute symptoms of elevated increased intracranial pressure and papilledema should be treated as a clinical emergency. Chronic papilledema, if untreated, can cause secondary progressive optic atrophy, visual loss, and eventually blindness.

If a dural sinus thrombosis or the administration of an external chemical is found to be the cause of the elevated intracranial pressure, the condition is no longer classified as idiopathic and is instead classified as a pseudotumor cerebri.

As a result, even the terms benign intracranial hypertension, pseudotumor cerebri, and idiopathic intracranial hypertension may be used interchangeably. Benign intracranial hypertension is a more accurate term for the disease entity unrelated to a secondary condition.

Is Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension a Disability?

If idiopathic intracranial hypertension renders the patient unable to perform any job, it may be categorized as a disability. The pressure inside the skull rises when fluid fills the space around the brain. Gradually, the optic nerve becomes compressed, there are terrible headaches, and the skull swells. Long-lasting symptoms may render a person incapacitated.

You can apply for supplemental security income or social security disability insurance payments based on the symptoms you experience. An attorney can thoroughly explain the requirements for receiving assistance depending on the severity of your conditions. Although this ailment is curable, it frequently returns.

People who are disabled and unable to work may be eligible for assistance under federal law. Governmental assistance programs are provided to those who meet the criteria and have a range of disabilities.

A candidate must satisfy specified disability requirements to be eligible for benefits due to pseudotumor cerebri. The social security administration’s manual on disability contains all the information on these requirements for eligibility.

It is necessary to demonstrate the severity, length, and ineffectiveness of therapies for pseudotumor cerebri to qualify for disability payments. If you have eyesight 20/200 or worse, you can be eligible for benefits for pseudotumor cerebri. Social security administration’s loss of visual acuity and efficiency might apply to you.

The social security administration office will consider your transferrable skills, employment history, age, and educational background. They may provide you benefits if it determines that you cannot return to your prior position or other employment.

Is Benign Intracranial Hypertension a Disability?

Four factors characterize a headache syndrome known as benign intracranial hypertension:

  • Regular spinal fluid composition.
  • Raised cerebrospinal fluid pressure without an intracranial mass lesion or ventricular dilatation.
  • Typically normal findings on neurological examination except for papilloedema and infrequent nerve palsy.
  • Level of consciousness.

The word benign indicates not harmful. However, the illness has the potential to impair vision and disrupt daily living seriously. It is a rare childhood ailment that manifests in a major referral hospital once or twice a year.

Early detection is crucial since prompt treatment can help maintain vision and allows the doctor to begin the right headache management strategy. It frequently has an idiopathic cause and typically affects young, obese girls in their third or fourth decade.

Nearly 90% of clinical syndromes characterized by this ailment lack a recognized origin. Given the frequency of vision loss brought on by this illness, the term benign intracranial hypertension was unavoidably replaced with idiopathic intracranial hypertension.

When the optic nerve, primarily in charge of our sense of sight and connects our brains with our eyes, is exposed to intracranial pressure, vision loss in this ailment results. Vision blurring and even graying out might happen if this nerve is under pressure. Untreated patients risk developing eyesight loss over time.

Overall, many people may become disabled as a result of benign idiopathic intracranial hypertension. Loss of vision is one of its most incapacitating effects.

Conclusion

Physicians are unsure of what causes idiopathic intracranial hypertension explicitly. However, given that this illness is more prevalent in young, overweight women, they believe hormones may be involved.

Still, children and adults who are not overweight can occasionally have this ailment. These symptoms could be caused by an infection, by taking antibiotics, steroids, or a lot of vitamin A, or by any of these things.

So, the answer to whether is idiopathic intracranial hypertension a disability is unquestionable yes because of the terrifying symptoms of this condition and the life-altering effect overall.

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Is Dermatomyositis a Disability?

thumbnail Is Dermatomyositis a Disability

Introduction 

Dermatomyositis is an unusual autoimmune disorder that results in muscle weakness and skin abnormalities. Almost everyone has felt tired muscles, especially after a workout or physical activity. But in people with dermatomyositis, an autoimmune reaction causes muscles to deteriorate and even waste away on their own.

Additionally, you can stumble frequently, fall a lot, and get exhausted after standing or walking. So, as a result of these dreading symptoms of this ailment, the answer to whether dermatomyositis is a disability is an absolute yes.

What Is Dermatomyositis?

Over fifty thousand Americans, ranging in age from infants to the elderly, are affected with a category of uncommon disorders known as myositis. The term myositis refers to a collection of diseases.

The main signs and symptoms are aching, sore, or weak muscles. Usually, over time, this steadily deteriorates. Myositis is typically brought on by an immune system issue wherein healthy tissue is wrongly attacked. 

Myositis falls into three different categories. These are:

  • Polymyositis: The shoulders, hips, and thigh muscles are most affected by polymyositis, which involves several different muscles. Ages 30 to 60 are typically affected, and women are more likely to experience it.
  • Dermatomyositis: Several muscles are affected, resulting in rashes in this ailment. It can also impact children and is more prevalent in women as juvenile dermatomyositis.
  • Inclusion Body Myositis (IBM): The muscles in the forearm, below the knee, and the thigh become weak due to inclusion body myositis, also known as IBM. It might also make swallowing difficult and is called dysphagia. Men are more likely to develop IBM, typically affecting those over 50.

One factor unites these uncommon illnesses, including dermatomyositis: persistent inflammation and muscular weakening. There is a unique rash in addition to symptoms comparable to those of polymyositis in dermatomyositis. 

A red, purple, or dark rash frequently occurs before the onset of the muscle complaints. Typically, it appears on the hands, eyelids, nose, and cheeks of the face in short knuckles. Additionally, the back, upper chest, elbows, and knees can occasionally exhibit it. You might also develop hard tissue lumps under your skin in addition to the rash, which can be uncomfortable or unpleasant.

Is Dermatomyositis a Disability?

According to the law, a physical or mental impairment that can cause death or that has lasted or is anticipated to remain for a continuous period of at least twelve months qualifies as a disability if it prevents the person from engaging in any substantial gainful activity.

A disability caused by physiological or psychological abnormalities that can be demonstrated using medically acceptable clinical and laboratory diagnostic techniques is a medically determinable physical or mental impairment. Solely a description of the person’s symptoms is insufficient. Medical documentation must prove that a person has a physical or mental impairment.

Living with dermatomyositis can be excruciatingly painful and frequently frustrating. Over time, muscles may go from being stiff, painful, or sore to entirely atrophying or losing all of their mass. The loss of muscle power, particularly in the upper arms or upper chest, can also make daily chores extremely difficult, such as working, interacting with others, or engaging in physical activity.

The symptoms that the ailment causes might frequently make it difficult for a person to carry out regular, ordinary tasks. Given the restrictions that the sickness throws on them, it is reasonable that these people are unable to work.

Benefits from social security disability may be able to lessen some of the financial strain dermatomyositis has caused if you have been afflicted with the disease and have been unable to keep a job owing to its consequences.

Is Dermatomyositis a Qualifying Disability for Social Security?

Is Dermatomyositis a Disability, playful

The social security administration has included dermatomyositis as one of the disorders that can make a person eligible for supplemental security income, also known as social security disability insurance.

The social security administration outlines the standards they employ to decide whether or not a person fulfills their definition of disability in their impairment listing manual. You might know about this manual as its popularly known name as the blue book. 

There is a significant probability that you would be eligible to obtain social security disability benefits if you have dermatomyositis and cannot work due to its symptoms. You are strongly advised to hire a social security disability attorney or advocate because the application and approval procedure for benefits can quickly become very complicated.

These standards apply to dermatomyositis and are as follows:

  • Daily life activities are severely impaired by muscle weakness in the shoulder or pelvis region, making it difficult to walk or perform large and tiny movements.
  • Dysphagia with aspiration brought on by muscle weakness, breathing issues brought on by weak diaphragm or intercostal muscles (muscles between the ribs), or recurrent episodes of dermatomyositis with at least two constitutional symptoms and one of the following: impact on daily living activities, the effects on the social function, inability to follow through owing to physical, emotional, or psychological issues that prevent you from doing so.

Conclusion 

As we have explained in this article in detail, regarding the question of whether is dermatomyositis a disability, the answer is yes. Like every government program intended to assist those in need, the social security system is susceptible to abuse by those who don’t need it.

Up to seventy percent of first-time applicants’ applications are rejected due to efforts to sort out this fraud. The main reason why most of these applications are rejected is that the paperwork is incomplete or is missing some required documents.

If you have dermatomyositis and your symptoms make you eligible for disability benefits, a skilled social security disability attorney will know how to submit your application papers so that you don’t have to wait any longer than is necessary for your payments to start arriving.