A number of maladies can impact the upper and lower extremities, consisting of the hands and arm, feet and leg. Tingling in the extremities may indicate something as benign as decreased circulation from pressure to the hand or feet, although tingling can reveal a condition that needs medical attention. These conditions include nerve problems like carpal tunnel syndrome, or immune diseases such as multiple sclerosis or Guillain-Barré syndrome.
Carpal Tunnel Syndrom
Carpal tunnel syndrome, or CTS, comes from increased pressure on the median nerve located at the wrist. Swelling in the carpal tunnel, a structure through which the median nerve and nine tendons pass, creates pressure, impacting the nerve and way it works, according to the American Society for Surgery of the Hand. Symptoms of carpal tunnel include numbness, tingling, and pain in the hand and fingers. X-rays, nerve conduction studies or electromyograms can reveal the condition. Both surgical and non-surgical treatments for carpal tunnel are available.
Multiple Sclerosis
According to MayoClinic.com, multiple sclerosis presents as numbness or weakness in the limbs, partial or complete loss of vision, tingling or pain in the body, fatigue, tremors and lack of coordination. This degenerative disease impacts the immune system, causing it to destroy the protective sheath covering the nerves. Multiple sclerosis, or MS, affects women more often than men and generally occurs between the ages of 20 and 40. No cure exists for MS, but symptoms are managed with drugs and physical therapy.
Guillain-Barré Syndrome
One of the first noticeable signs of Guillain-Barré syndrome presents as a tingling or weakness in the legs, which progresses to weakness and abnormal feelings in the arms and upper body in many cases. This immune system condition destroys the myelin sheath that surround nerve cell extensions called axons that carry nerve signals throughout the body. No cure for Guillain-Barré syndrome exists; however, physicians often find therapies, like plasma exchange and high-dose immunoglobulin therapy, successful in decreasing the effects of the condition and accelerating recovery, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.
