Numb Foot and EMG

[pennies4u]

The top of my right foot and about 4 inches up my calf has a numb feeling when i touch it.  I can still feel my sheets against it, my nails scratching it, etc., but it does feel different.  It has been this way for about 5 weeks.  Actually, I noticed the "numb" feeling about 3 days after a tubal ligation.  Although the tubal may not have had anything to do with the numbness, it is too much of a coincidence for me.  I still exercise daily and have full movement of my foot and leg. I went to the doctor who ordered an EMG for next week. Bloodwork and back xray were all okay.   I am scared too death to have the EMG done.  I have heard horror stories about them and am afraid I will come out of it in worse shape.    Since I have full movement of my foot and leg, does it sound like an EMG is warranted?  Maybe this is something that will just resolve itself?   Any thoughts, advice, suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

[snowgoer]

I just wanted to let you know what happened with me as you may have had a similar experience. During my college years I awoke one morning to find that the inside of my left ankle and all the way up my inner leg to my knee was numb. Not really numb as you said, but just with a sort of novacaine wearing off feeling that was really creepy. I went to my doc petrified I had MS because my Dad received that questionable diagnosis years earlier (he died at age 76 of cancer). The doc thought though that it was simply a compression type injury to my perineal nerve, most likely from crossing my legs during school. He told me it should be better by 6 weeks. Well by 6 weeks it was a little better but really it took about 6 months to totally heal. I never had another relapse, and don't often cross my legs anymore for extended periods of time! I am wondering if something in surgery did not cause your symptoms. They position you supposedly safe, but maybe a strap was too tight on your leg or something. You may want to ask your doctor how you were positioned and explain your situation. Best of luck to you.

[meniscal transplant]

I recently had a meniscal tranplant and allograph in my right knee.  This was the sixth surgery on this knee.Three days after surgery I was in intense pain. My docotr wasn't sure what was happening.  None of my painkillers were working.  I went to see a pain specialist and he said I may have perineal nerve damage.  I have been in intense pain for almost two weeks.  The doctor gave me neurontin andf it is not working.  I am very frightened.  He also said that I may have RSD. I have a numbness feeling in my calf and on the side of my foot.  Pain shoots through my toes all the way up to my hip and buttocks.  I don't seem to get real answers from the doctors.  I think they are scared of a law suit, but all I want is to be out of pain.

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

Without examining you I can not determine which nerves are affected, and therefore can not localize the problem well. A neurologist should be able to perform a neurologic examination and have an idea if this is a problem in the nerves or higher up in the spine. The EMG test is a test of muscle and nerve function. The first part of the test involves measuring how well your nerves conduct electricity. This involves small shocks (like static electricity) to the nerves. The second part of the test involves placing a small needle into various muscles to see how well they work. There should be no long term affects from the tests. After the test your muscles may feel sore, but this resolves in a day or two. With the neurologic examination and the EMG the doctor should be able to make predictions about what was injured and the chance/timing of recovery. Good luck and sorry for the delay.

[spitfire77]

I had an EMG two weeks ago.  It was a "shocking" experience but not that bad really.  The electrode portion was a little painful and the needle part was nothing on my legs until he put it in my back.  That was more suprising than painful but each person has their own tolerance of pain level.  I would be more concerned with the cause of the numbness than with the test.  I am very concerned about what is causing my symptoms.  I have tried posting a question but always hit the limit so far.  I'll keep trying.