Whats going on?

[cvg123]

Hi

I have been having some strange symptoms for about 3weeks. I literally woke up with numbess/tingling in my leg leg and arm. I have been to a neouroligist and she said my nerves look good and I had an MRI to test for MS which came back normal. They did find I was low in vitamin D but she said that wouldn't cause these kind of symtoms. It also seems to be a 'hot' sensation flowing up my arm from time to time as well and perhaps a different senstivity to hot or cold in my left arm and leg. I also noticed that for a couple of days last week my skin felt sore to touch on my hand/wrist. There were no marks, burns etc and this went within a couple of days. I think theres also some weakness but I haven't dropped anything etc.

Could this be ALS? If not what could it be?

[cvg123]

Thanks for the advice

as stated I have seen a neurologist and she advised coming back in 3months if my NCT  shows nothing tomorrow. My MRI was with with and without contrast with my brain and top of my spine. I have noticed a lot of twitching in my feet and left leg also the last 24/48 hours.

How is ALS diagnosed? Simply by ruling everything else out? Does this not lead to misdiagnosis?

[Christopher R Newey, DO]

Thanks for using the forum. I am happy to address your questions, and my answer will be based on the information you provided here. Please make sure you recognize that this forum is for educational purposes only, and it does not substitute for a formal office visit with a doctor.

Without the ability to examine and obtain a history, I can not tell you what the exact cause of the symptoms is. However I will try to provide you with some useful information.

Numbness could be due to multiple causes. Some causes can be nutritional (such as a vitamin deficiency) or autoimmune (such as Lupus or Sjogrens) or toxins (lead) to name a few.

One major cause of whole body numbness is related to emotional/psychiatric problems related to stress. These are true medical conditions whereby instead of a patient experiencing depression or anxiety, they experience physical symptoms, and once the stress is addressed, the symptoms resolve. Fibromyalagia is another medical condition that leads to whole body pains, and is best treated with medications such as lyrica and neurontin, exercise, and physical therapy.

If the numbness/sensory changes travel, you may want to be evaluated for migraines with aura or seizure. But if the numbness is constant, I would think less likely of these causes. Also, strokes in the thalamus can cause sensory changes. Thus, it would be important to evaluate this with MRI of the brain.

I would also recommend that you have an MRI of the cervical spine. A lesion in the spinal cord can cause sensory changes as well.

It is less likely that you have ALS, but more information would be needed. ALS is a condition that is accompanied by muscle fasciculations along with progressive loss of sensation, tingling or numbness, weakness, trouble swallowing and other symptoms.

You should continue working with your physician regarding this. You may need to be evaluated by a local neurologist to ensure that numbness is the only deficit you have. If it is truly whole body then an MRI of the brain may be helpful as well as an EEG to evaluate the structures and electricity of your brain.

Thank you for this opportunity to answer your questions, I hope you find the information I have provided useful, good luck.