Is the eye pain I'm experiencing a symptom of MS?

Here is My Question:
This is the second time that they have considered MS for me. My specialty appointment is not for a month. I am wondering if my temple/eye pain/palsy are normal MS symptoms? Certain kinds of light seem to trigger it.

Answer:
More often than not, headaches with pain in the temples and the eye, associated with light sensitivity (photophobia) are due to migraines and not MS.

While migraine headaches are more common in patients with MS, migraine headaches are a separate disorder and cannot be used in making the diagnosis of MS.

The only other headache syndrome that is sometimes associated with MS is called trigeminal neuralgia but what you are describing sounds more consistent with migraines and not trigeminal neuralgia.

One thing to keep in mind is that both migraines and MS can causes abnormal results on the MRI of the brain; you need to  see a specialist with the expertise to know the difference between the MRI findings in MS versus migraine headaches (typically this is a neurologist who specializes in MS).

Benjamin Osborne, MD
Associate Professor of Neurology and Ophthalmology
Director, Neuromyelitis Optica (NMO) and Neuro-Ophthalmology Clinics
Associate Director of the NIH/Georgetown Neurology Residency Program
Medstar Georgetown University Hospital