Chest Numbness

[Angie018]

I am a 17 about to be 18 in a few weeks female. I've been having a numb sensation for about 3 yrs....it first started on my left side of my chest then as months pass by it spreaded across my entire chest and it mostly occurs when i'm standing for a long while or walkin to much and i feel like i need to take a seat like if i'm tired.... my mom got really scared so she carried me to a neurologist and the doctor told that i was just fatigue in the chest and i should try to go swimming and he give me a multi-vitamin to take...it did stop it for about 3 wks to a month but then it kept comin back and now i'm wondering if i have to be takin those tablets for the rest of my life or should i go to another doctor for some sort of test cause the doctor didn't check me or nothin, he just told me to do what i mention earlier...what should i do and can this be dangerous?

[JainMD]

Hi Angie,
Sensory dysfunction involves two types of symptoms: “negative” and “positive” sensory phenomena.
A negative sensory phenomenon is an expression of a deficit of sensory function such as loss of warm or cold sensation or hypalgesia.
A positive sensory phenomenon is an expression of an abnormally increased function of the sensory system, such as paresthesias or neuropathic pain.
Your symptoms of you turning purple and pale in semi-cold room does suggests to some extent that the etiology would be Diabetic poly-neuropathy or traumatic and entrapment neuropathies or plexopathies.
Have you got any MRI done? What about electro-diagnostic studies, have the doctor's asked for it?
I think you should continue to take vitamins and also re-evaluate yourself to see if any other pathology exists.
Bye.

[Angie018]

Thanks for your reply.....umm  the last time i checked myself i didn't have diabetes and i was still at that time having the numbness but one thing that a doctor ask me was if i change color when i'm cold or hot... not fully sure but my fingers and toes do turn purple when i'm in a semi-cold, room temperature or nervous. Do you think this can be something serious or should i continue with the vitamins i always take?

[JainMD]

Hi Angie,
How are you feeling?
Pain, tingling and numbness are signs of neuropathy. Nerve involvement may be single (mono-neuropathy) or multiple (poly-neuropathy).
Do you have color change at the site of pain on exposure to warm and cold sensations?
This peripheral nerve pathology can be due to Diabetes, Prediabetes, Vitamin deficiency, and altered blood pressure status, any nutritional deficiency, and abnormal endocrine status, compression of nerve or impingement of nerve at time of exit from Vertebrae. You should be doing HbA1C, ESR, serum protein/immuno-electrophoresis, and vitamin B12, BUN, and creatinine levels.
Keep me informed if you have any queries.
Bye.