So, I’m lying here in the hospital at 3:30 am. I had some tingling/numbness in my left little finger for the past 2 days. Yesterday at about noon I noticed my left foot felt the same kind of thing - not numb, not pins and needles but kind of the sensation after pins and needles and before full circulation comes back, if that makes any sense. Then, about an hour later, my left cheek felt “heavy.” No other symptoms; I could speak and think clearly, but it was enough to scare me into the emergency room.
Blood pressure was high (166/84), but blood work, EKG and head CT and the PA’s neurologic exam showed nothing bad, and the PA said she was giving me antibiotics for a sinus infection and I could go. The infection, she said, could have pressed on nerves that caused some symptoms, but she did think I had an ulnar tunnel problem. This was about 5pm, and my finger was the only thing still tingling.
After consulting with the doctor, though, she said he would be in and they wanted to keep me for observation. The doctor also did a neurologic exam and said I might have had a TIA, the tests only showed I didn’t have a stroke. He scheduled an echocardiogram and carotid CT (I have hip replacements, so no MRI) for tomorrow to see if I have blood clots developing to cause a TIA. Also started me on statins.
Any help on what I can expect next would be appreciated. Could I reasonably request to go home tomorrow if the tests are okay? I don’t want to be stupid, but really don’t want to be in a hospital any longer than absolutely necessary. Turning 60 this year, and it’s not off to a good start…
I’m probably one of the only people awake other than the international high school students so I’ll say I’m sorry and this must be terribly frightening. Make sure you see a real neurologist. I’m close to your age but I feel 16 most days and it would be a real blow to me. Do you normally have high blood pressure?
Scoutmom, big hugs your way. I’m so sorry you are dealing with this, what is TIA? Im so glad it wasn’t a stroke, and good for you for being proactive and getting to the hospital rather than ignoring it. Please keep us updated!
Thanks for the kind words!
Blood pressure is usually 140/75ish, so borderline. I do take Lisinopril.
From the Mayo Clinic site: A transient ischemic attack (TIA) is like a stroke, producing similar symptoms, but usually lasting only a few minutes and causing no permanent damage.
So sorry you are going through this, scoutsmom. A TIA is essentially a mini stroke, though the symptoms usually resolve. Your BP was as you know quite high. Please let a neurologist do a consult before you are discharged, and certainly they’ll want to adjust your antihypertensive meds. Good luck!
You made the right decision to go in and stay for observation. Hospitals don’t let people hang around the hospital for too long, as soon as they feel it’s safe, you’ll be out with the recommendation to see a cardiologist and/or neurologist. I hope you got some sleep.
Having numbness in a digit for 2 days doesn’t sound like a TIA. TIAs are usually very short in duration. Most last only a minute, maybe up to 5 minutes or so. Your other symptoms, however, do sound like they could have been associated with a TIA. Strange.
I have numbness in various fingers from time to time because I have disc problems in my neck. As couple of years ago, I began having numbness in my arm/fingers and then my right leg and foot. Turned out a bone spur had formed because of my neck issues and it was pressing on my spinal cord, causing all the numbness.
If TIA is ruled out, you might want to consider having your spine evaluated. I went to a neurosurgeon for these issues and eventually had surgery, which completely eliminated the numbness.
My FIL had TIAs for a few years, then they went away. He would lose memory, if you will, of what he was doing. After one, MIL found him naked in a chair - he’d had one after he got out of the shower & went and sat down. No idea how he got there.
My Dad had a TIA a couple of years ago. He KNEW he was confused and that terrified him. He said he walked around his office complex for a while, trying desperately to force his brain into normality. The worst of it passed in a few minutes, then he said he approached a security guard and asked for help. He said he’d never been so frightened in his life.
Thanks again for the positive thoughts. The carotids look okay, according to the tech. I will be evaluated by a neurologist at some point today, so they tell me. It doesn’t seem what happened is what TIAs look like, but everyone says better safe than sorry, so I’m on blood thinners and waiting for the echocardiogram. Scary here on the neuro floor.
Last summer I spent the night in the hospital to rule out a stroke/TIA - so I know what you’re going through, Scoutsmom (and isn’t that weird? Two people with “scout” in their screen name having the same sort of neurological problem?)
My symptoms were different - a sudden-onset headache (not that painful, but still unusual for me) and a problem with reading (I could read individual words, but I couldn’t seem to make sense of the words once I completed a sentence.) Because I have diabetes, the ER staff wanted me to stay overnight for observation and further testing. As it turned out, they could find NOTHING wrong - my bp was great, my carotids were clear, the CT and MRI (with contrast) looked perfectly normal. I must have heard “you’re the healthiest diabetic I’ve ever met” three or four times.
I had an extensive discussion with the neurologist, who finally admitted she wasn’t sure what had happened to me. She was adamant that I didn’t have a stroke, a TIA, or a tumor. She hypothesized that it could have been a migraine (although it’s unusual for a middle-aged woman with no history of migraines to suddenly have her first one at age 55) or a panic attack (although those symptoms are usually more global. However, I WAS under a lot of stress at the time.) Ultimately, I was disappointed to have no answer for what happened to me, but I was even more grateful to get a clean bill of health, brain-wise.
I hope you get good news today and you get to go home soon!
Scoutsmom - what a scary night/day for you! I basically could have written Nrdsb4’s post #7. I have disc damage in my neck (C 5,6,7) and certain positions or movements can trigger my thumb and index finger to tingle and feel numb. (google little finger and neck as each finger is associated with a different disc). laying a frozen corn or peas bag on my neck helps. I also have an issue with my ankle/ foot which is based on how I sit or lay and some believe this is nerve damage from taking statin drugs. If after a few weeks you feel muscle weakness or pain in your shoulder or legs, pls call your doc and wean yourself off of the statins and try a different approach.
My docs at the Mayo are perplexed about why my upper cheek and behind my eye seem to go numb when I sit too long or not on a proper cushion, but it is possible that there is some sort of compression going on. If they ever do an MRI/MRA on you to check for artery compression at the base of your skull ask them to put you in the position where it occurs. Some places have sitting MRI machines.
Maybe your situation is just stress finding a way to temporarily rear its ugly head. Wishing you good luck.
Did they do a D-Dimer, the blood test that would usually show evidence of any clotting going on?
Sorry you are going through this, hard to know if a diagnosis is a good or bad thing as so many daignoses are for bad things, but not knowing is rough, too.
I really appreciate the perspectives and good wishes from you all. The neurologist ran me through her tests and doesn’t see any damage in person or my testing. She said she was most concerned about the face weakness, and that was the shortest-lived symptom. She couldn’t tell me for sure that I did or didn’t have a TIA, and had no real explanation for what it was (so we have that in common too, scout59!).
I’m not under any particular stress, but I did fall in September (running away from a bee!) and my neck is still sore. I mare sure everyone knew that background, but it didn’t seem significant to them.
Thanks for the heads-up on the statins, Kajon.
Since the tests were clear (they took blood 3 times, not sure about the D-Dimer one) and I was symptomless, they sent me home at 6 pm with an incredibly expensive (just my co-pay part) perscription for Aggrenox and warnings on what symptoms to look out for.
I’m really not sure if I dodged a bullet or heard a warning shot. I have an appointment with my family doctor on Friday, and I hope he can make more sense of it for me.
Thanks again for CC’s collective wisdom and support!