Damped
New member
- Joined
- Jun 15, 2021
- Messages
- 2
- Reason
- Learn about ALS
- Diagnosis
- 00/0000
- Country
- FR
Good evening,
First of all I want to apologize because after reading the pinned post, I normally have nothing to do here but wanted to share my growing concern.
My story started about a month and a half ago. I had a burning headache on the top of my head as well as tinnitus and dizziness from time to time and earache from time to time. I saw an ENT doctor who saw nothing in particular but gave me cortisone for 5 days.
One evening, I was sitting in my chair when I felt numbness in my left foot (above and around the ankle) as well as behind my left knee. The next morning, I had the same thing on my right foot, and in the afternoon walking became very difficult (pain behind the left knee in addition to the numbness). When I went to bed and woke up in the morning, the numbness was gone and walking was possible again. The pain and discomfort returned when walking. At the same time, I had a slight fever (which has remained unexplained since). I was given a blood test which turned out to be good (except for high neutrophils but I learned that cortisone could increase this rate...) + neurological clinic test which was fine.
In the days that followed, the situation didn’t improve, it was difficult to walk, pain was especially in the left leg and very tiredness. My MD asked me to do a brain and spinal cord MRI (which stops at L3, important to know), both without abnormalities. After that, for about 2 weeks, I recovered rather well but I developed strange sensations in the legs (electric shocks, sensations of cold especially on the left side...) and above all, I realized that walking gave me back pain and still leg pain, always more left side than right side. Sometimes when I walked I would feel a a slightly painful path in my left leg (nerve ?), It was not a big pain but an embarrassment. For example, twice I had an electric shock on my big toe when I bent forward (and my back pain is pronounced when I walk and stretch forward).
Since then, the strange sensations in the legs have almost disappeared, but fasciculations started 2 weeks ago in my two calves now. I didn't feel them, I realized it while lying in a park. Now sometimes I can feel them (like little bubbles under the skin), sometimes I don't feel them and they are also present in my feet. I sometimes have them in other parts of the body but they go away very quickly, in the calves it has been continuous for 2 weeks.
So I saw a first neurologist who explained to me that firstly, there were too many things for this to be the disease I was most afraid of. She did not necessarily make a connection between back pain, especially when walking / in certain positions, and symptoms in the legs. However, she tested the strength, reflexes and other things, nothing to report other than slightly less pronounced reflexes on the left leg.
In the meantime, I have also seen a reputable orthopedic surgeon who, for his part, suspects L5 or even S1 sciatica as well. On the other hand, he did not explain the fasciculations, although after being well informed, it appears that pinched / inflamed nerves can cause the fasciculations. He wants me to have an EMG + an MRI of the lumbar spine (and the neurologist is suspecting a peripheral neuropathy following a viral episode à unexplained fever).
Since then, I still have discomfort when walking after a while (sometimes pain (2 on a scale of 10) located either on the side of the thigh, or in the buttock, or on the outer side of the calf, or on top of the foot) and fatigue that appears in the left leg. This morning my left leg was starting to really tire, then I was able to walk again in the afternoon after putting my legs to rest. Same thing on the back, when I walk and stretch forward I have a pain on my lower back. When you push down on my lower back, I also feel pain (which I don't feel on the other vertebrae).
What scares me very much are these fasciculations which do not go away and, for two days, they are much stronger when I contract the calf (on the left only). Likewise, it is more difficult for me to contract the left calf, the contraction is less effective especially in certain positions. However, I can walk well, do my daily chores, do extensions with both legs, etc.
Of course, I am not writing to you to have a diagnosis but to get your opinion on this story, which is beginning to weigh on me a lot and worry me a lot ...
Many thanks in advance for your opinions !
First of all I want to apologize because after reading the pinned post, I normally have nothing to do here but wanted to share my growing concern.
My story started about a month and a half ago. I had a burning headache on the top of my head as well as tinnitus and dizziness from time to time and earache from time to time. I saw an ENT doctor who saw nothing in particular but gave me cortisone for 5 days.
One evening, I was sitting in my chair when I felt numbness in my left foot (above and around the ankle) as well as behind my left knee. The next morning, I had the same thing on my right foot, and in the afternoon walking became very difficult (pain behind the left knee in addition to the numbness). When I went to bed and woke up in the morning, the numbness was gone and walking was possible again. The pain and discomfort returned when walking. At the same time, I had a slight fever (which has remained unexplained since). I was given a blood test which turned out to be good (except for high neutrophils but I learned that cortisone could increase this rate...) + neurological clinic test which was fine.
In the days that followed, the situation didn’t improve, it was difficult to walk, pain was especially in the left leg and very tiredness. My MD asked me to do a brain and spinal cord MRI (which stops at L3, important to know), both without abnormalities. After that, for about 2 weeks, I recovered rather well but I developed strange sensations in the legs (electric shocks, sensations of cold especially on the left side...) and above all, I realized that walking gave me back pain and still leg pain, always more left side than right side. Sometimes when I walked I would feel a a slightly painful path in my left leg (nerve ?), It was not a big pain but an embarrassment. For example, twice I had an electric shock on my big toe when I bent forward (and my back pain is pronounced when I walk and stretch forward).
Since then, the strange sensations in the legs have almost disappeared, but fasciculations started 2 weeks ago in my two calves now. I didn't feel them, I realized it while lying in a park. Now sometimes I can feel them (like little bubbles under the skin), sometimes I don't feel them and they are also present in my feet. I sometimes have them in other parts of the body but they go away very quickly, in the calves it has been continuous for 2 weeks.
So I saw a first neurologist who explained to me that firstly, there were too many things for this to be the disease I was most afraid of. She did not necessarily make a connection between back pain, especially when walking / in certain positions, and symptoms in the legs. However, she tested the strength, reflexes and other things, nothing to report other than slightly less pronounced reflexes on the left leg.
In the meantime, I have also seen a reputable orthopedic surgeon who, for his part, suspects L5 or even S1 sciatica as well. On the other hand, he did not explain the fasciculations, although after being well informed, it appears that pinched / inflamed nerves can cause the fasciculations. He wants me to have an EMG + an MRI of the lumbar spine (and the neurologist is suspecting a peripheral neuropathy following a viral episode à unexplained fever).
Since then, I still have discomfort when walking after a while (sometimes pain (2 on a scale of 10) located either on the side of the thigh, or in the buttock, or on the outer side of the calf, or on top of the foot) and fatigue that appears in the left leg. This morning my left leg was starting to really tire, then I was able to walk again in the afternoon after putting my legs to rest. Same thing on the back, when I walk and stretch forward I have a pain on my lower back. When you push down on my lower back, I also feel pain (which I don't feel on the other vertebrae).
What scares me very much are these fasciculations which do not go away and, for two days, they are much stronger when I contract the calf (on the left only). Likewise, it is more difficult for me to contract the left calf, the contraction is less effective especially in certain positions. However, I can walk well, do my daily chores, do extensions with both legs, etc.
Of course, I am not writing to you to have a diagnosis but to get your opinion on this story, which is beginning to weigh on me a lot and worry me a lot ...
Many thanks in advance for your opinions !
