Paresthesia
Paresthesia, also known as pins and needles, is an abnormal sensation of the skin (tingling, pricking, chilling, burning, numbness) with no apparent physical cause.
The briefest electric shock type of paresthesia can be caused by tweaking the ulnar nerve near the elbow; this phenomenon is colloquially known as bumping one's "funny bone".
[2] Reactive hyperaemia, which occurs when blood flow is restored after a period of ischemia, may be accompanied by paresthesia, e.g. when patients with Raynaud's disease rewarm after a cold episode.
Benzodiazepine withdrawal may also cause paresthesia, as the drug removal leaves the GABA receptors stripped bare and possibly malformed.
[citation needed] In the elderly, paresthesia is often the result of poor circulation in the limbs (such as in peripheral vascular disease), most often caused by atherosclerosis, the build-up of plaque within artery walls over decades, with eventual plaque ruptures, internal clots over the ruptures, and subsequent clot healing, but leaving behind narrowing or closure of the artery openings, locally and/or in downstream smaller branches.
Nerves below the head may be compressed where chronic neck and spine problems exist, and can be caused by, among other things, muscle cramps that may be a result of clinical anxiety or excessive mental stress,[citation needed] bone disease, poor posture, unsafe heavy lifting practices, or physical trauma such as whiplash.
[citation needed] Another cause of paresthesia may be direct damage to the nerves themselves, i.e., neuropathy, which itself can stem from injury, such as from frostbite; infections such as Lyme disease; or may be indicative of a current neurological disorder.
[13] Chronic paresthesia can sometimes be symptomatic of serious conditions, such as a transient ischemic attack; or autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis, complex regional pain syndrome, or lupus erythematosus.
[medical citation needed] In addition to treatment of the underlying disorder, palliative care can include the use of topical numbing creams, such as lidocaine or prilocaine.
