Paresthesia

Paresthesia is an abnormal sensation of the skin (tingling, pricking, chilling, burning, numbness) with no apparent physical cause.[1][2] Paresthesia may be transient or chronic, and may have any of dozens of possible underlying causes.[1] Paresthesias are usually painless and can occur anywhere on the body, but most commonly occur in the arms and legs.[1]

"Tingling" and "Pins and needles" redirect here. For the ancient people mentioned in Chinese historiography, see Dingling. For other uses, see Pins and needles (disambiguation). Not to be confused with Anaesthesia or Pallesthesia.
Paresthesia
Other namesParaesthesia
Pronunciation
  • /ˌpærɪsˈθiːziə, -ʒə/
SpecialtyNeurology

The most familiar kind of paresthesia is the sensation known as "pins and needles" after having a limb 'fall asleep'. A less well-known and uncommon but important paresthesia is formication, the sensation of insects crawling underneath the skin.

Causes

Transient

Paresthesias of the hands, feet, legs and arms are common, transient symptoms. The briefest, electric shock type of paresthesia can be caused by tweaking the ulnar nerve near the elbow. Similar brief shocks can be experienced when any other nerve is tweaked (a tweaked neck nerve may cause a brief shock-like paresthesia toward the scalp). In the older age group, spinal column irregularities may tweak the spinal cord briefly when the head or back is turned, flexed, or extended into brief uncommon positions (Lhermitte's sign).

The most common, everyday cause is temporary restriction of nerve impulses to an area of nerves, commonly caused by leaning or resting on parts of the body such as the legs (often followed by a pins and needles tingling sensation). Other causes include conditions such as hyperventilation syndrome and panic attacks. A cold sore outside the mouth (not a canker sore inside the mouth) can be preceded by tingling because a cold sore is caused by herpes simplex virus. The varicella zoster virus (shingles) also notably may cause recurring pain and tingling in skin or tissue along the distribution path of that nerve (most commonly in the skin, along a dermatome pattern, but sometimes feeling like a headache, chest or abdominal pain, or pelvic pain).

Other common examples occur when sustained pressure has been applied over a nerve, inhibiting or stimulating its function. Removing the pressure typically results in gradual relief of these paresthesias.[3] Most pressure-induced paraesthesia results from awkward posture, such as engaging in cross-legged sitting for prolonged periods of time.

Reactive hyperaemia, which occurs when blood flow is restored after a period of ischemia, such as on rewarming after a cold episode in patients with Raynaud's disease, may be accompanied by paresthesia.[4]

Chronic

Chronic paresthesia (Berger's paresthesia,[5] Sinagesia[6] or Bernhardt paresthesia[7]) indicates a problem with the functioning of neurons or poor circulation.

In older individuals, paresthesia is often the result of poor circulation in the limbs (such as in peripheral vascular disease), most often caused by atherosclerosis, the build up of plaque within artery walls, over decades, with eventual plaque ruptures, internal clots over the ruptures and subsequent clot healing but leaving behind narrowing of the artery openings or closure, both locally and in downstream smaller branches. Without a proper supply of blood and nutrients, nerve cells can no longer adequately send signals to the brain. Because of this, paresthesia can also be a symptom of vitamin deficiency and malnutrition, as well as metabolic disorders like diabetes, hypothyroidism, and hypoparathyroidism. It can also be a symptom of mercury poisoning.

Irritation to the nerve can also come from inflammation to the tissue. Joint conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, and carpal tunnel syndrome are common sources of paresthesia. Nerves below the head may be compressed where chronic neck and spine problems exist and can be caused by, among other things, muscle cramps that may be a result of clinical anxiety or excessive mental stress, bone disease, poor posture, unsafe heavy lifting practices or physical trauma such as whiplash. Paresthesia can also be caused simply by putting pressure on a nerve by applying weight (or pressure) to the limb for extended periods of time.

Another cause of paresthesia may be direct damage to the nerves themselves, i.e., neuropathy, which itself can stem from injury, such as frostbite, or infection, such as Lyme disease, or may be indicative of a current neurological disorder. Neuropathy is also a side effect of some chemotherapies (see chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy).[8] Benzodiazepine withdrawal may also cause paresthesia as the drug removal leaves the GABA receptors stripped bare and possibly malformed. Chronic paresthesia can sometimes be symptomatic of serious conditions, such as a transient ischemic attack, or autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis, Complex Regional Pain Syndrome or lupus erythematosus. The use of fluoroquinolones can also cause paresthesia.[9] Stroke survivors and those with traumatic brain injury (TBI) may experience paresthesia from damage to the central nervous system.

The varicella zoster virus disease (shingles) can attack nerves causing numbness instead of pain commonly associated with shingles.

Acroparesthesia

Acroparesthesia is severe pain in the extremities, and may be caused by Fabry disease, a type of sphingolipidosis.[10]

It can also be a sign of hypocalcemia.

Dentistry

Paresthesia or "persistent anesthesia" is a transient or potentially permanent condition of extended numbness after administration of local anesthesia and the injected anesthetic has terminated.[11]

Potential causes include trauma introduced to the nerve sheath during administration of the injection, hemorrhage about the sheath, type of anesthetic used, or administration of anesthetic potentially contaminated with alcohol or sterilizing solutions.[12]

Other

Other causes may include:

Diagnostic

The nerve conduction study usually provides useful information for making diagnosis. A MRI or a CT scan is sometimes used to rule out some causes from the central nervous system.

Treatment

Medications offered can include the immunosuppressant prednisone, intravenous gamma globulin (IVIG), anticonvulsants such as gabapentin or Gabitril and antiviral medication, depending on the underlying cause.

In addition to treatment of the underlying disorder, palliative care can include the use of topical numbing creams, such as lidocaine or prilocaine. Care must be taken to apply only the necessary amount, as excess can contribute to the condition. Otherwise, these products offer extremely effective, but short-lasting, relief from the condition. Paresthesia caused by stroke may receive some temporary benefit from high doses of Baclofen multiple times a day. HIV patients who self-medicate with cannabis report that it reduces their symptoms.[17]

Paresthesia caused by shingles is treated with appropriate antiviral medication.[18]

Etymology

The word paresthesia (/ˌpærɪsˈθiːziə, -ʒə/; British English paraesthesia; plural paraesthesiae /-zii/ or paraesthesias), comes from the Greek para ("beside", i.e., abnormal) and aisthesia ("sensation").[2]

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References
  1. "Paresthesia Information Page". National Institutes of Health. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. 14 June 2018. Retrieved 3 October 2018.
  2. "Paresthesia Definition and Origin". dictionary.com. Retrieved 1 August 2015. Paresthesia refers to a burning or prickling sensation that is usually felt in the hands, arms, legs, or feet, but can also occur in other parts of the body. The sensation, which happens without warning, is usually painless and described as tingling or numbness, skin crawling, or itching.
    Most people have experienced temporary paresthesia -- a feeling of "pins and needles" -- at some time in their lives when they have sat with legs crossed for too long, or fallen asleep with an arm crooked under their head. It happens when sustained pressure is placed on a nerve. The feeling quickly goes away once the pressure is relieved.
    Chronic paresthesia is often a symptom of an underlying neurological disease or traumatic nerve damage. Paresthesia can be caused by disorders affecting the central nervous system, such as stroke and transient ischemic attacks (mini-strokes), multiple sclerosis, transverse myelitis, and encephalitis. A tumor or vascular lesion pressed up against the brain or spinal cord can also cause paresthesia. Nerve entrapment syndromes, such as carpal tunnel syndrome, can damage peripheral nerves and cause paresthesia accompanied by pain. Diagnostic evaluation is based on determining the underlying condition causing the paresthetic sensations. An individual's medical history, physical examination, and laboratory tests are essential for the diagnosis. Physicians may order additional tests depending on the suspected cause of the paresthesia.
  3. Paresthesia Information Page: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. (NINDS)
  4. Belch JJ, McCollum PT, Walker WF, Stonebridge PA (1996). Color atlas of peripheral vascular diseases. Mosby-Wolfe. p. 77. ISBN 978-0-7234-2074-3.
  5. [ICD-10: R20.2]
  6. [ICD-10: R25.1]
  7. [ICD-10: G57.1]
  8. "Chemotherapy-induced Peripheral Neuropathy". National Cancer Institute. Archived from the original on 11 December 2011. Retrieved 1 December 2011.
  9. "FDA Drug Safety Communication: FDA requires label changes to warn of risk for possibly permanent nerve damage from antibacterial fluoroquinolone drugs taken by mouth or by injection". Food & Drug Administration. Archived from the original on 28 May 2016. Retrieved 28 May 2016.
  10. Marks, Dawn B.; Swanson, Todd; Kim, Sandra I.; Glucksman, Marc (2007). Biochemistry and Molecular biology. Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health/Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. ISBN 978-0-7817-8624-9.
  11. Paresthesia dental definition: The Free Dictionary. (TheFreeDictionary)
  12. Garisto, G; Gaffen, A; Lawrence, H; Tenenbaum, H; Haas, D (Jul 2010). "Occurrence of Paresthesia After Dental Local Anesthetic Administration in the United States". The Journal of the American Dental Association. 141 (7): 836–844. doi:10.14219/jada.archive.2010.0281. PMID 20592403. Archived from the original on 2012-08-20. Retrieved 2013-05-02.
  13. Ietsugu, T; Sukigara, M; Furukawa, TA (Dec 2007). "Evaluation of diagnostic criteria for panic attack using item response theory: findings from the National Comorbidity Survey in USA". Journal of Affective Disorders. 104 (1–3): 197–201. doi:10.1016/j.jad.2007.03.005. PMID 17434598.
  14. Tihanyi, Benedek T.; Ferentzi, Eszter; Beissner, Florian; Köteles, Ferenc (1 February 2018). "The neuropsychophysiology of tingling" (PDF). Consciousness and Cognition. 58: 97–110. doi:10.1016/j.concog.2017.10.015. ISSN 1053-8100. Retrieved 28 November 2019.
  15. Nitrous Oxide
  16. Vijverberg, H.P., van den Bercken, J. Crit. Rev. Toxicol. (1990) Neurotoxicological effects and the mode of action of pyrethroid insecticides.
  17. Woolridge Emily; et al. (2005). "Cannabis use in HIV for pain and other medical symptoms". Journal of Pain and Symptom Management. 29 (4): 358–367. doi:10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2004.07.011. PMID 15857739.
  18. Cohen KR, Salbu RL, Frank J, Israel I (2013). "Presentation and management of herpes zoster (shingles) in the geriatric population". P T. 38 (4): 217–27. PMC 3684190. PMID 23785227.
  • Clinical and neurological abnormalities in adult celiac disease, G. Cicarelli • G. Della Rocca • M. Amboni • C. Ciacci • G. Mazzacca • A. Filla • P. Barone, Neurol Sci (2003) 24:311–317 DOI 10.1007/s10072-003-0181-4
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