Bells Palsy / Tingling numb hands feet / joint pain

acre44 · #1 01-02-2009, 05:38 PM

Can anyone help me out with my symptoms and possible solutions? I had been exceptionally healthy 38 year old white male until this and now I am suffering from panic attacks and anxiety over my health that is affecting my whole life and family.

11/23/08 I came down with what I thought was a severe sinus infection. Pain was worse than I had ever had before above my eyes. My forehead was even swelled up and puffy. The ER doc perscribed a Z-pac which I began taking immediately. I began feeling better the next day, pain subsided. On 11/25 my lips became numb. I called the Dr and he said that I was having a reaction to the Z-pac to stop it immediately. That night I had to go to the ER because the whole left side of my face was not working. Diagnosed that night with Bell's Palsy. Put me on prednesone for the inflammation and sent me home. I had appts with optamology, ent and PC dr on 12/11. They all said that it was classic bells and i should see an improvement quickly. The PC prescribed acyclovir just in case. Took that for 5 days. My face returned to normal in a few weeks. The night of 12/14 I began tingling in my feets and hands. I went to the ER. They did sugar check and some blood tests, all normal, sent me home. I went to see my PC Dr on 12/16. I had did my research and others had told me I may have lyme. I live in Pennsylvania and I am outdoors the whole summer. My dog even had ticks removed from our yard. The doctor ordered up the tests but said he would begin treating it as lyme even though I do not remember having a tick or any rash. I began IV ceftriaxone for 20 days. The next day I went in for my IV but my vision was getting blurry, lots of floaters. My spine was tingling and I had a burning sensation in my mid spine. He sent me to the ER for a full work up. They did an MRI, CAT scan, lumbar puncture (spinal tap), full blood work up, CBC, sed rate, etc. The neurologist did a complete physical. ALL were normal. All 3 lyme blood tests came back negative and my spinal fluid was negative for lyme and the protein level was normal. They stopped the IV anti-biotic. The neuros scheduled me for an EMG in mid-January. Since that ER visit I have had pain/stiffness mid spine, tingling lower spine, tingling/numb from knees to foot, tingling/numb from elbow to fingers, knee pain, foot pain, ankle pain, finger pain, elbow pain, sleeping trouble. The pain travels from joint to joint, comes and goes. I can sleep for a few hours then wake up suddenly wide awake, hard to go back to sleep. Two days ago I could feel pressure and tingling of my sciatic nerve down both legs and a sharp pain in my calf and ball of my foot. That lasted one day. The PC Doc thinks it is related to a virus (herpes, shingles, etc.) that caused the bells palsy and that it will get better with time. I never did have a rash or any skin disorder with any of this. I have read about lyme and the negative tests. I have also heard about different viruses causing joint inflammation. I do have joint pain but no swelling and my sed rate is excellent.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Felsen · #2 01-03-2009, 08:49 PM

There are doctors at this forum and they will surly give you a more proper advice, but I wonder if all this isn’t an autoimmune reaction. Ten years ago I experienced a something very similar. All tests were negative. It took three years before I was back to normal. In my case I think it was provoked by mononucleosis and simultaneous severe stomach flu. Do you remember any infections a month or so before all this?

richard wayne2b · #3 01-04-2009, 02:23 PM

I hate to tell you this ,but your symptoms are in what we call a stocking and glove distribution,which means that in all likelihood it's in your head.I,too,would probably get panic attacks if I developed Bell's palsy,but I know of nothing to be worried about.Your pain is real,but it's likelt to be psychophysiological.

richard wayne2b · #4 01-04-2009, 02:24 PM

I forgot to recommend a few days of Xanax.

aquila · #5 01-05-2009, 09:02 PM

Maybe it is "in your head" and maybe it is Ramsay-Hunt syndrome, a result of shingles.

Try here:

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/ram...ndrome/DS00878

This site describes the specific test used to diagnose this probem. Ask if you have had this testing & what the results are if so.

richard wayne2b · #6 01-05-2009, 09:15 PM

It is not Ramsay-Hunt syndrome.

richard wayne2b · #7 01-05-2009, 11:09 PM

blaze doesn't know what she's talking about!Lyme disease dosn't cause Bell's palsy.

richard wayne2b · #8 01-07-2009, 04:18 PM

SoI was wrong on this one thing<that doesn't make electromagnetic sensitivity real!

aquila · #9 01-07-2009, 05:08 PM

richard-wayne2, in all seriousness, what about the posting makes you not think about Ramsay-Hunt? The poster states that his/her physician thought it was Ramsay-Hunt.

I try to give people info about the dx they have received. Sometimes it's a matter of the patient not really understanding what the dx means in terms of their own personal situation.

I'll try to go back into this thread & read your reply, if any. Best wishes.

richard wayne2b · #10 01-07-2009, 05:39 PM

Unless I missed something,the patient didn't have the typical red painful rash of a Herpes Zoster infection.That's why it couldn't be a Ramsay-Hunt syndrome.