[Tingling in the hands]

Ned Tijdschr Geneeskd. 1999 Jul 31;143(31):1593-7.
[Article in Dutch]

Abstract

Four patients whose most prominent complaint was tingling in the hands are presented. In the first patient, a 33-year-old man, the cause appeared to be a traumatic cervical myelomalacia caused by a rear end collision three years before. The second patient, a 34-year-old woman, initially only had tingling in the hands but eventually developed paresis of the right arm and leg. MRI followed by surgery revealed a centrally located ependymoma. The third patient had a cervical disc protrusion to the left at CVI-CVII. This 49-year-old man recovered after rest and physical therapy. The last patient, a 23-year-old woman, had tingling in the ulnar area of the left hand. This appeared to be caused by an avulsion of the medial epicondyle of the humerus, the result of a trauma 10 years before. After extirpation of the epicondyle the complaints disappeared. In patients with paraesthesias it is very important to take the history meticulously and to perform thorough neurological examination. A simple neuroanatomical scheme may be used to interpret the somatosensory findings.

Publication types

  • Case Reports
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Cervical Vertebrae*
  • Diagnosis, Differential
  • Elbow / diagnostic imaging
  • Elbow Injuries*
  • Ependymoma / complications
  • Ependymoma / diagnosis*
  • Ependymoma / pathology
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Intervertebral Disc Displacement / complications
  • Intervertebral Disc Displacement / diagnosis*
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Paresthesia / etiology*
  • Radiography
  • Spinal Cord Injuries / complications
  • Spinal Cord Injuries / diagnosis*
  • Spinal Cord Injuries / pathology
  • Spinal Cord Neoplasms / complications
  • Spinal Cord Neoplasms / diagnosis*
  • Spinal Cord Neoplasms / pathology