can neuropathy come on suddenly? - Neuropathy Message Board

deb a · 12-29-2008, 10:13 AM

Hi, I woke up on Christmas day and the bottom of my feet were numb and tingling, the next day my legs,feet,arms and hands were numb by the 27th I was completely numb from my feet up to my chest including back. I went to the emergency room and the dr. tested me for diabetes and blood work came back ok, dr. said that he thought I had neuropathy but did not give me any information on what causes it or what it is really. Can it happen this fast? Does it sound like neuropathy?

Thanks

Aussie100 · 12-29-2008, 12:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by deb a

Hi, I woke up on Christmas day and the bottom of my feet were numb and tingling, the next day my legs,feet,arms and hands were numb by the 27th I was completely numb from my feet up to my chest including back. I went to the emergency room and the dr. tested me for diabetes and blood work came back ok, dr. said that he thought I had neuropathy but did not give me any information on what causes it or what it is really. Can it happen this fast? Does it sound like neuropathy?

Thanks

Yes it can, that doctor should have consulted a neuro about this, you need further testing now, may not be but one that comes to mind is Guillain-Barre syndrome it is a rapid onset neuropathy, they can do a spinal tap to see if you have high protein levels in the cerebrospinal fluid, but you really do need to be checked out properly now so they do all the testing needed to properly diagnose your condition.
Diabetic neuropathy usually doesn't present itself so suddenly, sounds like that doctor was clueless.
best of luck
Aussie

deb a · 12-29-2008, 05:06 PM

Thank you for your reply, I looked up gbs and it does sound like I have a lot of the same symptoms. I did get an appointment with my neurologist tommarow so hopefully I will have some answers. Thank you again

bethvt · 12-29-2008, 09:24 PM

I had been really tired for about a year but I had just started a doctorate program and I was a single parent so I kind of assumed it was just life! Anyway, I woke up August 1 of last year with numbness and these sensations going up and down my legs. I was light-headed and got dizzy easy and it just kind of progressed from there over the next month or so to in my arms and I began getting some lovely stabbing pains. I was just diagnosed with small fiber neuropathy this past summer. It can take awhile to find out what's going on so just be patient if necessary and I wish you luck.

feelbad · 12-30-2008, 08:28 AM

hi deb. at the very least that ER should have done some level of actual scan on your spine. i am kind of suprised they didn;t even do at least a CT. getting an MRI done(with a contrasting agent added) would at least rule out or rule in the spinal areas as the possible generator of your symptoms. there are just certain types of conditions/lesions and other things that you can actually have within the spinal cord itself or along the column somewhere that could be responsible for the sudden onset of your types of symptoms. one of these lesions would be a vascular type? i had one in my cord that was bleeding off and on. luckily it was only veinous fed and not arterial,but these can be there and just go unnoticed or unsymptomatic til something makes them apparent or they bleed. that could casue symptoms to suddenly appear. i am not trying to freak you out here but these things do show up from time to time in peoples cords and brains too. just one possibility for you that would explain the suddeness of your symptoms an the type of symptoms you are having. i am hoping your neuro ordered at least the MRI when you saw him or her?

what is the reason that you were already seeing an actual neurologist previous to this episode? please keep us posted. Marcia