Trembling legs.

[vickinat]

I have something wierd happening lately especially at PT and my therapist doesn't know why it happens or what is causing it. I was wondering if anyone else has experienced this.

My lower back injury has always affected the left hip and leg,and left foot falls asleep sometimes, but lately while doing exercises or the machines at Pt my "good" leg on the right will start trembling and shaking, a few times it would start to get so much that the therapist had me stop the task that I was doing, it would ussually occur while standing or pushing with the feet.

I have had it occur a few times on the "bad side", left, such as when I would try to shave my leg while standing in the shower and putting that leg/foot on the toes or at an angle.

Could this be a muscle thing or nerve related? Could this be from the mildly bulging discs or the nerve root irritation? I have never had this happen before recently. The injury is 10 months old.

This really scared me at Fridays PT, when the right leg and foot went very fast all the way down while doing side leg raises on the hip machine.

Thanks for any ideas.
Vickie

[Bummer Knees]

Have you posted on the Bonati question site?

I realize they haven't answered any post for three weeks, although one day they will surpise us and answer.

[Pooh]

vickie

I get stuff like that but to me that is all part of my neuropathy. So I can't say it's from your nerve root irritation or not but it could be nerve related. It is something that should be mentioned to your doctor though if symptoms are getting worse and going over to your good leg as well.

[vickinat]

Bummer:
I have something from before over there and no answers like you said for quite some time, that's why I figured that I would ask here, in case someone else had this happen to them. Thanks for the advice though.

Pooh:
This is in my good leg, it started there and has only occurred a few times in the bad side. I go back to the Dr. on the 25th and will mention it to him. The only problem is that when I see him, I can't talk much because he is always in a hurry, and if I ask too many questions he doesn't have time for any treatments. What is neuropathy?? How does it affect a person? Does it involve the nerves?

Thanks for your advice
Vickie

[Pooh]

neuropathy does affect the nerves and can be caused by many things. I seen in another post that you are taking Nsaids along with some other meds. There are some tests that can tell if it is from nutritional deficiencies such as b-12, folate, etc.

However, with the spinal injury - that may also be a place to start to make sure that the bulging disk hasn't gotten worse. If that's not the case then it would require further investigation as to what is causing what is going on.

Some other signs of neuropathy is burning, electric shocks, numbness - which also go along with spinal involvement as well - so you can see how it can be difficult to tell.

Normally it can be dx'd with blood work along with emg/ncs.

One thing I find that helps when my muscles start twitching on their own is putting ice on it for a while - this helps calm down the nerve. Basically with neuropathy - the nerve is sending signals to the brain at iratic rates. Example - I can accidentally put my fingers in hot grease when I am cooking - and I mean accidentally I don't do this on purpose - and I won't feel anything other than a wet sensation even though the grease is hot. I can also get splashed by hot grease and it can feel like my whole hand is on fire from one small splatter. So you can see how the signals don't work right on getting to the brain.

One word of advice I can give you if that if both of your legs feel numb and your lying down or sitting down - stay there until feeling comes back - you don't need to fall which can happen with either spinal involvement or neuropathy. If the signals aren't getting to the brain correctly then the signals from the brain telling your muscles to move may not work as well. Been there done that ..... not fun.....

I would still ask your doctor questions as this is your body and it's the only one you get. After all - you are the patient and without patients he wouldn't have a business or income now would he. Patients deserve the time it takes to have their questions answered in my book.

here is something to read up on neuropathy - and there is lots of info on the web about it. - I have both nutritional and axonal neuropathies along with Thoracic outlet syndrome So lots of nerves are involved.

http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/324/7335/466

[vickinat]

Pooh:
Thank you for the info, you explained it very well, I have checked out and read some of the site that you posted, I'll read more of it later. My 2nd EMG/NCS in Aug. said that the radiculpothy of the L5-S1 nerve roots were improving from chronic acute to just chronic, since the 1st one in Feb. I have had 3 epidurals since the first EMG/NCS.

This isn't like a twitch, the entire leg goes from the top to the foot. It starts out slow and gets very fast, then stops, then it'll start up again. This happens mainly while putting pressure on it during PT exercises or machines, at first the therapist thought that since it was doing most of the work instead of the left leg doing it's share that it was the muscles. He doesn't know now what it could be from.

The only other wierd thing that occurrs is that I get goosebumps from my head down to my toes a good bit of the time for no apparent reason. The Dr. who did my epidurals said that the steroids used can cause various things like the goosebumps to happen.

Thanks for the advise, I don't think that's what it is though.
Vickie

[red1030]

vickinat...have you ever heard of restlessleg syndrome...this could be the beginning of that syndrome. I have experienced this many times...just food for thought...Red

[vickinat]

Thanks Red, But it's wildly shaking very visible and mostly only occurs at Pt.So I don't yet, but I am going to bring it up to the doctor.
Thank you
Vickie

[Bummer Knees]

I have seen what you describe with a good friend of mine with back problems. With him the tremors would start with the foot and work it's way up involving the whole limb and then the whole body.

His muscles were very weak at the time he was having this problem.
The symptoms did decrease over time and then stop.

Doctors never knew what it was.

[AQA]

Vickinat, do you by chance take neurontin? I get periodic twitching in my left arm. My pcp took me of neurontin because it can cause tremors. In my case, that was not the problem so I am taking it again.