Aa
Aa
A
A
A
Close
Avatar universal

hand, feet numbness after concussion

My 17 yr old son got a concussion by hitting his head on the floor in a baskerball game on 1-16-09.  He was not knocked out but very dazed.   An MRI and CT found no bleeding or damage,  but from the very moment it happened both hands, feet and face cheeks have been numb and he lost strenght in his hands.  He has been doing physical thearpy about 4 weeks and is slowly gaining his strength back but still has all of the numbness.  He had another MRI on 3-24-09 and the Dr. said it showed no signs of nerve damage and everything looks normal.  The Dr. keeps telling us the numbness should go away in 2-6 months.  We are at a loss and don't know what to do. We don't know if we should wait or seek another Dr.
He did see a neurologist the night of the injury and a follow up visit the next week and he refered us to a physical therapist.
2 Responses
Sort by: Helpful Oldest Newest
Avatar universal
MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL
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 your doctor.

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

It sounds like your son has residual symptoms of weakness and numbness after a sports injury. If he has had a normal MRI of the brain and cervical spine, this implies that there is not damage large enough to be shown on the MRI. This rules out extensive damage, bleeds. However, if the impact on his head was strong enough, mild injury due to stretching of the nerves in the brain (diffuse axonal injury) or something similar to a bruise (mild contusion) could potentially explain his symptoms. In such cases, physical therapy is important, as is counseling if he has sufferred significant stress related to the ordeal. Time is required for improvement in such cases, and persistence with physical therapy is important, as months are sometimes required for full recovery. I recommend continued follow-up with your neurologist, paritcularly if your son's symptoms do not improve or he develops new symptoms.

Thank you for this opportunity to answer your questions, I hope you find the information I have provided useful, good luck.
Helpful - 1
Avatar universal
I would go to a CranioSacral therapist over a physical therapist for issues like this. I am a bit jaded about the physical therapy profession, but I find in general their knowledge base is not up to date. This is not to say there are not a few good PT's out there that have studied beyond what they were taught in school, just that most of them have sub-par educations based on outdated models.
Helpful - 0

You are reading content posted in the Neurology Forum

Popular Resources
Find out how beta-blocker eye drops show promising results for acute migraine relief.
In this special Missouri Medicine report, doctors examine advances in diagnosis and treatment of this devastating and costly neurodegenerative disease.
Here are 12 simple – and fun! – ways to boost your brainpower.
Discover some of the causes of dizziness and how to treat it.
Discover the common causes of headaches and how to treat headache pain.
Two of the largest studies on Alzheimer’s have yielded new clues about the disease