What is wrong with me? Stinging “pins and needles” pain in both my calves.?
so to tell you a bit about my problem i’ll start with saying im a 15 year old female fairly healthy, a soccer player and had been going to physical therapy for about 3weeks earlier this month for what was said to be a "calf strain". I am kind’ve worried because besides the constant stinging in the calves once in a while I would feel stinging in my hands. i never told my trainers though. I would describe the feeling as pins and needles. So i did some research and here are the things I think could be wrong with me.
-Claudication pain: "pain
that occurs in the legs when walking or exercising. It is usually the result of circulation problems which affects the flow of blood to the leg muscles. In severe cases, the pain may persist even when the patient is inactive"it doesn’t just sting during sports but outside of them like right now im on the couch.
-diabetes- because i also had been getting headaches and pains throughout body and other symptoms but my blood pressure is always normal so im not sure about this idea.
Peripheral neuropathy: Peripheral neuropathy is the term for damage to nerves of the peripheral nervous system, which may be caused either by diseases of the nerve or from the side-effects of systemic illness. Peripheral neuropathy is a common neurological disorder resulting from damage to the peripheral nerves. It may be caused by diseases of the nerves or as the result of systemic illnesses. (Source: excerpt from NINDS Peripheral Neuropathy Information Page: NINDS)
other info on calf burning-
Calf burning sensation (medical symptom): The skin sensation of partial numbness or "pins and needles" or a type of "burning", "tingling" or "creeping" sensation of the skin, is known as a "paresthesia". Symptoms may start as a tingling (paresthesia) and change to a numbness, or there may be a combination of decreased sensation (numbness) but with heightened sensations at certain times or with stimulation. Any type of tingling, burning, or numbness is usually a symptom related to a sensory nerve being damaged, diseased, or injured. Causes depend on the exact location of the paresthesia sensations, but typically include a physical nerve injury type condition (e.g. a nerve entrapment or some type of pressure being applied to a nerve directly or to the spinal attachment of that nerve), or a disease condition affecting the nerves (e.g. neuropathy, diabetic neuropathy, multiple sclerosis, diabetes, and others). Having these sensory symptoms in multiple locations, or the recurrence of similar symptoms in different locations is a hallmark symptom of multiple sclerosis, so your doctor will likely ask about the past history of similar symptoms to assess the likelihood of multiple sclerosis as a diagnosis (see symptoms of multiple sclerosis). Any of these tingling or numbness symptoms are more than just annoying; they can indicate a serious medical condition and require prompt medical diagnosis by a professional.
PLEASE HELP IM IN A GREAT DEAL OF PAIN TO THE EXTENT THAT IM CRYING i don’t know what to do and if i tell my dad he won’t do anything he will just say suck it up … im scared for my health and soccer career. thanks your help is greatly appreciated!!!
Also if you have any other ideas please share them anything that can help break the case!
"nothing serious" thanks for your opinion but this has been going on for the past month i hope its not serious but you can’t seriously blame me for doubting
well im not a doctor yet, still in my second year of school, but if you have multiple symptoms that could be applied to this many problems, it will be hard to diagnose the problem you have. you need to see your doctor. if your dad wont take you, call your doctors office and see if you can talk to a nurse, make an appointment yourself and find a way to get there! if you do have a problem, it is best for your doctor to do some tests. the "pins and needles" feeling is typically associated with a neurological problem. but, dont worry, im sure youll be fine. problems usually do occur after injuries so it could just be the aftermath of your prior injury. so, my advice: YOU HAVE TO GO SEE YOUR DOCTOR. you wont get a good answer on yahoo answers because we’re not doctors nor do we know of your medical history or have the ability to run any sort of tests on you. i hope everything is ok, and good luck!
it is probably the lack of blood flow to your calfs or hands, i’ve had the same problem after jogging a mile everyday for p.e. and swim practice every week.
i don’t think its something serious. it’s like you become numb or sore after a vigorous exercise, especially since you play soccer, i don’t think it is anythign serious
P.T. and they didn’t help you? Ouch. This isn’t so much about the calf muscles as it is about the tendons that attach the muscle to your foot. I bet your foot hurts occasionally from this. What you have to do is release the tendon in the bottom of your calf and you should be good to go. Here is the best way I know how to do that:
Achilles tendon:
With that foot in your lap, take both your hands and place them on the back of the tendon about one inch apart at ankle level. Press the tendon hard between your fingers and thumbs and hold that pressure there. Relax, take a deep breath and exhale and don’t tense up any part of your body. After 30 seconds slowly raise the front of your foot as far as it will go. Then remove the pressure but hold your foot there for one minute longer.
If you continue to have trouble or need help get in touch.
I agree with the above poster, I would go to the doctors. It is almost impossible for anyone over the internet to diagnose something, the lack of any sort of observations make it difficult. Also the lack of a history further complicates this.
I doubt you have diabetes however, since you did not complain about being hungry all the time, peeing a lot or being thirsty all the time (the three cardinal signs of diabetes mellitus). Which is always good, diabetes can be a terrible illness.
Please do make an appointment with the doctor however, a pins and needles sensation that persists is not something you want to ignore.
You should be concerned, but some of the more serious things you’ve mentioned are not likely.
Vascular claudication:Not likely based on your age and symptoms. The hallmarks of vascular claudication is years of untreated peripheral vascular disease or diabetes. The typical person is over 50 and has a long history of smoking. By this stage, there are usually changes to the skin: the leg become stained a brownish color. It would be practically unheard of for this to occur simulatenously in the hands. Finally, the hallmark of the disorder is that that symptoms occur with activity. It severely limits walking capacity and is relieved with rest. Sitting on the couch and experiencing symptoms would indicate that this is not likely a source of your symptoms.
Diabetes: While headaches may occur in this disorder, they also occur in other disorders. Juvenile diabetes typically has the symptoms of extreme hunger and weight loss despite eating a lot. Extreme thirst with extreme urination also occur. Finally, due to low blood sugar, the patient is likely to faint frequently…espeically with long lapses between meals. Even if you did have Juvenile diabetes, it would not be likely to cause diabetic neuropathy…this usually comes after many years of poorly managed diabetes. Your blood pressue really does not have much effect on this disorder in the way you describe. Diabetes is an issue with either insulin production and managing the glucose in your blood.
Peripheral Neuropathy: Again, this is a disorder likely to happen is an older population. Usually there is history of either poorly managed diabetes or alcholoism or other medical disorder. You can get idiopathic neuropathy, which means the cause is unknown, but again this is a disease of the older adult population.
MS: Certainly this symptom might occur in MS. However, you are under the age of average age of onset of MS. Only rarely have I seen it onset in someone in their late 20s…usually it’s late 30s, 40s or even 50s. However, if you are finding other symptoms such as weakness and sudden clumsiness in the hands, this would be cause for concern. MS can have pain associated with it, but it’s usually the weakness that is the hallmark.
Your symptoms do indicate that there is perhaps something neurological. What is most likely since it is occurs with activity and position (sitting on the couch), it could indicate what the typical lay person would call a "pinched nerve" or "sciatica"…this typically is referred from the lower spine. A bulging or herniated disc can irritate a nerve, or an irritated disc can also refer pain down the leg. It typically only occurs in one leg, but can cause symptoms in both. Since you are a young and athletic person, this could be suspicious for a spondylolisthesis (ie, a slippage of the vertebrae)…however, not all spondylolistheses are something to worry about. What is also concerning is that you get the symptoms in the arm. This would not be consistent with a low back problem. It could occur if you also had a neck problem. However, a bad enough neck problem can also refer pains to the legs. …but the fact that you report your leg symptoms more frequently, I would say it’s more likely consistent with a separate neck disc related pain and a separate low back one.
The other issue could be posterior compartment syndrome…this is really a rare condition…I’ve only seen it once. It is a vascular condition, but is not a degenerative as in the ones above. It typically produces tingling and "cramping" during athletic activity. So the fact that you get it even at rest and that it sometimes occurs in the hands makes this not likely.
What I would do first is have your PT screen your spine. If they are not a spine expert, I think it’s worth a trip back to the physician, as neurologically related symptoms in teens are a cause for ruling out things such as the spondylolisthesis. If everything turns out OK and you do have pain referred from the spine, you will most likely be referred back to PT, but I would recommend seeing a PT who is certified in Mechanical Diagnosis and Therapy: http://www.mckenziemdt.org