She did a whole bunch of tests on my wrists, arms, and neck to try to learn more about the numbness and tingling in my fingers. Nothing in my neck seemed to cause any trouble, and she conceded that maybe the MRI isn't needed just yet.
She was pretty confident that the problem is my median nerve, leading to some kind of carpal tunnel syndrome.
I guess the big question is what is causing the carpal tunnel syndrome. At first, she still seemed to think there might be a musculoskeletal explanation, partly because the symptoms are symmetric. Also, I get intermittent tingling in my toes. It could be related to Herceptin, or Taxol. One possibility that seemed to make the most sense to me is the old idea of swelling; maybe the hormone therapy is causing fluid retention, which is squeezing some nerves in both my hands and feet. My hands and feet do look a bit puffy, but when the physical therapist actually measured my arms, they were not swollen compared to my previous measurements.
She apologized for not being able to pinpoint the root problem. I appreciated her efforts, and completely understand the difficulty. I have so many medications and treatments, it's impossible to definitively link one thing to another!
Anyway, she advised me to do a median nerve glide and two upper body stretches. I didn't schedule another physical therapy appointment; I figure I'll see how these exercises go, and I can always call if things get worse.
No comments:
Post a Comment