Mysterious neck pain

[Kristi101]

I woke up one morning with a stiff neck. In three days my left ear and the left side of my throat began hurting. It has been 4 months. Four doctors, two of which are ENTs, see nothing in my throat or ears. I have taken muscle relaxers, penicillin, anti-inflammatories and nothing really helps. At times, when I turn my head, I get sharp pain in my throat. Other times, my throat aches and sometimes feels like there are spasms. My ear aches with a  burning sensation. My neck feels stiff all the time. My GP is at a loss. X-rays and MRI studies of the neck and CT scan of soft tissue show nothing remarkable. Any suggestions as to what this could be and what type of specialist I should consult?

[CCF-Neuro-M.D.-CS]

Without other symptoms the pain becomes very difficult to localize. If the pain is superficial it is most likely realted to nerves in your neck, however if the pain is deep or poorly localized then it could be do to nerves coming from your brainstem. The normal spine MRI does not help in finding the problem. If you have not had a brain MRI it may be reasonable to have one performed. This will help to evaluate your brainstem and the nerves coming out from the base of the brain. If you have not seen a neurologist, I would recommend it. They can examine you to make sure no other abnormalities are present. Lastly, if the pain is mostly over your face this could be a type of trigeminal neuralgia, which is nerve pain secondary to irritation of the trigeminal nerve. If you have not tried a neuropathic pain medication such as amitryptiline or gabapentin it may be worth a shot to see if they relieve the pain. Good luck.

[Demiguise]

Don't shrug this. Get copies of ALL reports in your file. See
what the radiologists said. Since neck, ear, throat problem is all on left, seems like an ENT is the Dr. to see. Neck could be a
swollen gland. Throat spasm could be pulling eustacion tube from
the ear. I went to 16 docs before I demanded a `coronal CT' that
showed serious damage after 8 yrs. You need a Dr. to think out of
the box! Not all appears on MRI's & a peek in the ear. I had it
all. Ear fluid aspiration & a tube gave short term help. If Rx
doesn't clear it, you need to be aggressive. These boards say 2
things. `Lack of knowledge & lack of time w/ us!' You can even
ck-out your films & have them re-read. I hope some of us can
get MD's to push even a theory of how to help. Let us know your
outcome. It may help others.

[Kristi101]

Thanks for the opinion. For 20 years I have had what I thought were just headaches but now realize that what I have is face pain but that is on the opposite side of my head than this neck/throat/ear problem. After 10 years of telling me to take Motrin, my GP prescribed 50mg Elavil at bedtime and that has controlled the face pain but not this new condition. He tried adding Neurotin for this but it gave me a headache - unfortunately I seem to be negatively affected by medication that helps others. I will be seeing a neuro in a few weeks because he is booked (hope that means he is a great diagnostician:-).

[CAM]

I have had similar problems in the past.  My first stop now is always my chiropractor.  I have spent lots of money on doctor visits, referrals to specialists, countless medications that do nothing to resolve the problem (only make it to where I can function), and many (expensive) specialized tests.  My primary physician has only negative things to say about me going to a chiropractor, but so far the chiropractor is the only one who has made a difference.  You have nothing to lose by seeing a chiropractor.  Best of luck.