Unexplained numbness/tingling/weakness-right sided

[steph0127]

I'm female, 28 years old and have been in decent health all my life, no problems until now. I have been having strange symptoms with my arm and leg on the right side of my body only. About 2 months ago I started having a stiff neck and shoulders and a week later my right shoulder started feeling sore- not like I injured my arm or shoulder, but more like deep in the muscle was sore. Soon after that soreness started, I began to feel numbness/heavyness down the same (right) arm and gradually started feeling tingling and numbness in my fingers of that arm. The pinkie finger is the one that is really numb and the other fingers are more tingly. The numbness in the arm lasted for a few days and from there it turned into a weakness feeling in my arm and I get a burning sensation in my forearm a lot, especially if I try to use my right arm to do anything- lifting or grabbing things, etc. The more I use my right arm for everyday things, the more weak and heavy it feels. My doctor suspected a pinched nerve in my neck and ordered an MRI of my CSPINE. It came back normal. About that same time, I started feeling tingling/numbness in my right leg from my knee down, including my foot. (from my knee up is totally fine and no back problems) That numbness feeling gradually started to be a burning feeling and the tingling/numbness in my foot gradually has gotten worse... The feeling in my foot is strange... It's like I can't figure out what it feels like, sometimes it feels tingly, sometimes almost like it feels itchy, sometimes it feels like its burning, sometimes it feels like all of those at the same time. It's a horrible annnoying feeling. The problem with my numb/tingly foot has caused me problems walking. When I put weight on that foot, my whole leg feels weak, like I cant support much weight onto that side. I have been limping around at times, and going up and down stairs is not easy. My dr was not sure what could be causing it and referred me to a neurologist.

I have had 2 MRIs of my brain, 30 days apart, first one was normal and neurologist ordered another, havent gotten results back yet. I have had an EMG on my leg, came back normal. I have had bloodwork done to test for deficiencies, all came back normal. My neurologist says I look good on paper and so far there is no answer for my symptoms. I have tried physical therapy- that was the first time I started having any back pain, after physical therapy, so I have not continued it. The physical therapist thinks my arm symptoms are from a problem with a disc in my neck- even though I told him my cpine MRI came back normal and he also could not explain how my leg could be affected by that disc problem.

My symptoms are not intense when I first wake up, it seems like they appear within a half hour after I wake up and stay with me all day long. I have taken neurontin, lyrica, cymbalta. neurontin helped the most but I have gained so much weight and especially after trying the lyrica, I have gained 20 lbs in a little over a month. the cymbalta did nothing for me. Some other symptoms I've had in the past few months are: vertigo - a few times, blurry vision at times- not constant, seeing things in my peripheral vision- sometimes flashes of light, sometimes I think I see a shadow of something moving and I turn to look and expect to see someone there, a few headaches and also a few times where I have been very sensitive to sounds.

My neurologist is trying to figure it out but I think he is running out of ideas for tests and he is now referring me to other doctors for other opinions, only problem with that is that it takes so long just to get a consultation. My neuroligist diagnosed possible MS. Im not even sure what possible ms really means. I need help. This problem has caused me to not be able to work (I'm not allowed to perform my duties while on medication) and I cannot afford to wait months just to talk to another doctor. I need to find an answer, I can't afford to lose my job.

[steph0127]

Thank you for that response. I got my results from my second MRI and it showed a small 2 mm lesion that my neurologist says is not new and is not sure why it didn't show up the first time.  I'm wondering what possibilities, other than ms, could explain my symptoms... Obviously I wouldn't want to have an ms diagnosis , I just want whatever the real diagnosis is and I'd like an expert opinion as to what else could be causing this.  

[Abhijeet Ghosh]

Dear Steph,
Many thanks for posting your question via my forum.
MS means Multiple Sclerosis.It is a disease of the nerves.There are 2 basic types of nerves, one having a myelin sheath and another not having a myelin sheath.MS affects those nerves which have myelin sheath.The myelin sheath is slowly destroyed around the nerves leading to demyelination and scarring of the nerves.
It's related to genetic and environmental causes and is idiopathic in nature.The sign/symptoms are hypoasthesia, paresthesia, weakness, nystagmus, muscle spasm, easy fatigue, etc. Textbooks says that signs/symptoms may include any sort of neurological symptoms.
The diagnosis of MS is purely based on the correlation of the sign/symptoms along with Brain MRI/CT scan.
I would suggest you to take a second opinion from another good neurologist.
Once diagnosed of MS,treatment should be properly taken,else the prognosis worsens.
All the best.
Please ask for more clarifications.
Regards.