A brain teaser

Published Apr 11, 2018

7 Posts

This is kind of a patient question. My step daughter sent me a message last night saying she thinks she has neuropathy. She is 22 and has been an unstable diabetic for about half of her life. She had some major blood sugar drops during pregnancy, has an insulin pump etc. So I ask about the "neuropathy". I ask if it is like pins and needles in her feet. She said, "My chest arms legs i can't really feel...like i can scratch and i know im scratching but it just feels tingly but barely. I can't feel it like i normally would. I responded that neuropathy typically starts in the extremities. She said "I seriously thought at first my brain was like tricking me or something idk what it is then. I don't do drugs i promise lol"

She did go see her primary doctor today. He didn't do any labs. She said that he just told her it was from her sugar.... Her a1c is 8.3 as of February.

This is not my area of expertise. It just doesn't sound like diabetic neuropathy to me. I told her I would put some feelers out and see what I could come up with, at least some questions to go back and ask her doctor. Of course Google is NOT my friend in this. Googling symptoms never really gets you anywhere good and I don't have any lab values or test to give me any information to begin putting this puzzle together. One thought was a B12 deficiency. She is picking some up since I doubt it could HURT anything even if it isn't the right answer.

Any thoughts? Any good questions I can send her back to a doctor with? I am suggesting a second opinion, for sure.

Thanks in advance.