numbness in foot, anyone?

[kulharv]

Hi all,

I have just finished my 4th RTX treatment and a few days later started having pain in my right leg(sciatica?) but what is really worrisome is the numbness in my right foot. My big toe and the adjacent toe are very painful, the whole foot feels numb. The right foot is, temperature wise, hot whereas my left foot is cold. I have also noticed red bumps on the top of my right foot.
I did end up going to the ER and they gave me T3's and scheduled a CT scan of my spine. Then went to see my gp the next day and he said that it was the nerves that were very tender on my foot (can't even light brush the top) so he prescribed me Gabapentin. This has helped at all.

If anyone has had anything similiar, please let me know.

Thanks.

Harvi

[vdub]

I'm really surprised you haven't received an answer to this yet. I'm sure I have seen others on the forum with similar symptoms, but I'm not one of them. When is the CT scan scheduled for?

[kulharv]

hello vdub,

ct scan was for my lower back to ensure that there was no disc problems. It was done this morning and was clear. I am having a bone scan done tomorrow as my foot is getting extremely bad. It is numb on the top with red marks. The red marks/rash is not anywhere else. The pain is no longer tolerable and I am taking percacet every 4 hrs as well as gabapentin. Its been 3 days no sleep!

The ER docs knew me as they attended to me 5 weeks ago when I went in for coughing up blood. They were very helpful and wanted to take a look at the bones. I don't know what it will show but will find out tomorrow.

I haven't seen anyones comments with similar symtoms, so if there is anyone out there, please let me know. i beginning to wonder if the RTX has helped (4 treatments just completed) or if I need more.

Thanks.

[Al]

Hi all,

I have just finished my 4th RTX treatment and a few days later started having pain in my right leg(sciatica?) but what is really worrisome is the numbness in my right foot. My big toe and the adjacent toe are very painful, the whole foot feels numb. The right foot is, temperature wise, hot whereas my left foot is cold. I have also noticed red bumps on the top of my right foot.
i

This is curious, Harvi. It could be a reaction to the treatment--possibly a kind of allergy. Those red bumps sound interesting in this regard. Or it could be part of the disease progression. Does the Wegs doctor know about this? Let us know what the CT scan shows.

Al

[kulharv]

Hi Al,

CT scan for my lower back was fine. I'm having a bone scan tomorrow and will let you know. Also am trying to get into see my Rhuemy tomorrow to discuss the new problem. My rheumy is awesome and this has been confirmed everytime I end up in the ER and they ask who my specialist and when they tell me they have nothing but praise for his expertise, knowledge and his quick reaction to everything that is going on.

I will keep you posted.

Thanks.

Harvi

[drz]

RTX can take awhile to gets Wegs under control so maybe relief will happen soon if it is Wegs related. If it is side effect of treatment they also tend to disappear over time. Hope things get better for you soon as I remember the foot pain swelling too.

[Al]

Hi Al,

CT scan for my lower back was fine. I'm having a bone scan tomorrow and will let you know. Also am trying to get into see my Rhuemy tomorrow to discuss the new problem. My rheumy is awesome and this has been confirmed everytime I end up in the ER and they ask who my specialist and when they tell me they have nothing but praise for his expertise, knowledge and his quick reaction to everything that is going on.

Great. It helps to have a medic who is with you. The bone density scan is useful to determine how nasty the prednisone is on your system. I try to counteract the effects (so far, successfully) by doing resistance training (lifting weights) regularly.

Al

[Sangye]

Harvi, why on earth did your doc do a CT to assess the discs? The MRI is the diagnostic method of choice for that. Discs don't show well on CT, and it exposes you to high radiation.

Also, a clear MRI or CT doesn't rule out low back problems causing your symptoms. Unfortunately (and surprisingly) most MDs are truly pathetic at evaluating the spine. They just don't know the neurology and anatomy well. I don't know why-- surely they learned it in school!

I suggest you see a chiropractor for a proper evaluation. S/he can tell if you have something they can treat, or if it looks more like Wegs-induced neuropathy.

[kulharv]

Hi everyone,

Thanks for getting back to me with info. The CT scan was due to pain shooting from my butt to the foot and they were thinking it could be the sciatic nerve, it wasn't.

The pain has however increased from my foot to half way up my leg and the red bumps (shingles????) have also started appearing on my lower leg whereas they were just on the top of my foot.

I'm seeing my rheumy tomorrow and will be asking for a referral to a neurologist. I can only get a few hours of slightly reduced pain with percacet.

I'm hoping that my rheumy has some answers for me tomorrow as this all started aftger my 4th RTX treatment.

I'll let you know what the doc says tomorrow.

Thank you everyone for your advise! It is greatly appreciated!

[Hal]

Hello Harvi,

When I got sick, just before I went to the ER because of the intense pain in my legs, I too was getting a lot of red spots in my legs. The doctors did not know what they were, but in hindsight I believe they were blood clots. They went into my lungs as well.

I have a lot of nerve damage in both feet and some motor nerves in the legs. Like you, some areas are hyper sensitive. Even a bed sheet brushing against those areas would cause intense pain. Yet most of the feet became numb. Because of the pain I could not even walk, so I deteriorated amazingly quickly, to the point that this time last year I needed a wheelchair to get from the car to the neurologists office in the hospital. The doctors prescribed Lyrica for me, which is a $2 a pill nerve pain killer. I continue to take those while waiting for my nerves to get sorted out. If I stop taking the pain killers I simply will not be able to walk at the moment. So, you are not alone there! I never took RTX but took Cytoxan instead for six months.

I would ask you doctors if those spots might be blood clots, and if you should take blood thinners for a spell until you stabilize.

That was my sort-of-similar experience. Good luck!

Hal.