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numb hands and feet....any ideas?

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Crohn's Disease
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Posted 2/3/2009 6:59 PM (GMT 0)
I just saw my pcp yesterday for a respiratory infection and as i was sitting there my hands and arms started tingling and went numb...and when i would relax my hands my ring and pinkie finger would curl up.  Saturday night my big toes went numb and burned.  I've been having some tingling in my hands, feet and legs over the last few months.   I asked the nurse practioner about it and now they want to do a work up on me.  Anyone have any ideas what this could be?   I was officially diagnosed with crohn' s in my colon almost two years ago and have been on remicade about a year and a half.  She mentioned it could possibly be a secondary auto immune disease..... sad

christina

Posted 2/3/2009 7:33 PM (GMT 0)
Could be low B12?

:)
Posted 2/3/2009 9:40 PM (GMT 0)
Have you been taking Flagyl??
Posted 2/3/2009 9:54 PM (GMT 0)
Hi. I have had issues with this on and off for some time now. I think everyone thinks I'm nuts. I actually spent the night in the hospital about a year ago becasue my hands basically stopped working...All tests were normal, but I know I wasn't. From time to time my hands or feet go numb, as does my face and head. It's the strangest thing and not very comforting at all! B-12 has always been normal. Not on flagyl...no clue what it is- other than Crohn's often has very stange manifestations in the body.
Posted 2/3/2009 10:26 PM (GMT 0)
My Dad has Lupus and he gets this. His ring and pinky fingers have curled right up to his hand and and he actually cannot straighten them out. Obviously I am not a Dr., but reading your post reminded of that.
Posted 2/4/2009 12:34 AM (GMT 0)
Worth noting that "normal" B12 is often not so - even a little on the low side but within "normal" ranges is known to be enough to make a big difference to energy levels and all other B12 related functions. Plenty of Crohnies here will testify to that !
The Mayo Clinic considers that the standard definition of normal B12 is wrong. Given that, peripheral neuropathy is something that sprang to my mind. Search the site for threads on that, I seem to remember it coming up before.
My thinking is, take some (non-oral) B12. If nothing changes, it wasn't that causing the problem, and you've taken one of the few things in the pharmacopia that has less risk of side effect than an aspirin. If things improve, whoopee, think of all the time, money and hassle you've saved. Not to mention permanent nerve damage.
If it is neurological, it may take a long time to get definite answers.
Posted 2/4/2009 3:00 AM (GMT 0)

Hi Chrissy27,

I would definitely check with your gastroenterologist about your numbness/tingling.  I'm not on Remicade, but just a super quick search on it indicates that you should notifiy your doctor immediately if you're on Remicade and experience these symptoms, as it's a rare but potentially serious side effect.  You can read more about this on such websites as drug.com and web.md.  I hope it's OK to post two of the websites below that mentioned numbness/tingling.

http://www.drugs.com/remicade.html

http://www.webmd.com/drugs/drug-16554-Remicade+IV.aspx?drugid=16554&drugname=Remicade+IV

Good luck, and keep us posted, OK?

Posted 2/4/2009 10:47 AM (GMT 0)

It could be the lialda, how long have you been on it?

Thanks

Carmen

Posted 2/4/2009 2:42 PM (GMT 0)
I have been on the lialda for about a year and a half.  when the numbness started i also started having severe pain in my neck at the base of my skull.  I have an appointment with my gi today...so we'll see.....

Posted 2/5/2009 12:50 AM (GMT 0)
Best Wishes going your way hope you get some answers. lol gail
Posted 2/5/2009 6:30 AM (GMT 0)
Sounds like it could be a B12 issue - this is a common problem for Crohn's patients. 
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