Numbness and pulsing in face

[katp219]

Hi I am 40 year old female.  2 years and six months ago I developed a pulsing sensation in my face(do not hear it) only feel it 24 hours a day never has gone away for even a second.  Also, my entire mouth including tongue, lips, gums, and teeth are extremely numb.  Very Fatigue.  I also developed in this same time period constant sinus infections and bouts of vertigo. I had sinus surgery in February. No relief. I have been to every kind of doctor imaginable and had multiple Mri of brain, Mra, Mrv.  Spinal tap They can not find anything on these test.  Has anyone heard of these symptoms.  Please help!  

[katp219]

Thank you Dr Newey for your reply to my post.  The numbness is equal on both sides.  The numbness started at the same time as the pulsing.  The numbness is always there, but the sensation varies day by day. Sometimes no feeling, sometimes tingling, and sometimes extreme burning sensation on tongue, lips, teeth and starting to spread onto face.  I thought I might mention that I do have degenerative disc disease. C3 through C7.  I have had so many test done is there a name for the test that you suggested?  I might have already been tested.  There is also one other unusual symptom I have. It doesn't happen everytime, but on many occasions when I talk on the phone my ear will start having popping and clicking sound and even the pulsation sensations.  Do you have any other suggestions?  Thank you so much for your time.

[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.

If your symptoms are one sided, it would be concerning. (I am not sure if yours is or not). One-sided numbness is most commonly due to a problem in the brain (as opposed to other areas of the central nervous system such as the spinal cord or peripheral nerves) or trigeminal nucleus/nerve. Many possibilities exist, and depend somewhat on your age, your risk factors, and the nature of your symptoms (whether or not the numbness started suddenly or gradually, whether it is a complete loss of sensation or a tingling, whether it is an objective finding on examination or it is only a feeling that you have etc). Facial numbness can have several causes. These include migraine/headache, anxiety/panic attacks, multiple sclerosis, stroke/TIA, tumor, vascular malformations, seizure and trigeminal neuralgia to name a few.

It is good that you have had an MRI of the brain. I would suggest that you have vessel imaging (particularly of your carotids and posterior circulation) to rule out vascular causes of pulsation feeling.

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