Brief Answer:
Unexplained neuropathy

Detailed Answer:
Dear Sir. Good evening. My name is Dr. Saghafi and I am a neurologist from the XXXXXXX Ohio area.

I understand that your right leg has some numbness on the lateral side just above. Now, it appears that you say 12" (TWELVE). Did you mean to say 1-2" (One to Two)? above the knee? I am assuming that this is a relatively new symptom otherwise, you likely would've had it looked at long ago, right? Or have you actually had this problem for some time and never had anything done about it? And it also appears that there is no associated leg or knee weakness and no pain accompanying this area of numbness. I would also like to know whether this area of numbness is in the configuration of a small PATCH area above the knee or are we more looking at a large band that extends from this area above the knee all the way up toward the thigh or something like that?

On the basis of the rather limited information you are most likely suffering from a sensory neuropathy which seems to be localized to the right lateral area of the right knee which would be in the territory of the lateral cutaneous nerve. Reasons for this type of problem could be anything from compression/traumatic injury to nutritional or metabolic.

The best place to start for a better understanding of the problem is by visiting a doctor (perhaps a neurologist) so they can outline exactly how much of the leg is involved as they can do this more precisely with equipment and experience. Also, even though it would appear to be only on the right side they will likely check on the left side to see if there is even a minimal chance that there could be deficits which simply may not be as noticeable.

Blood work and a possible imaging study will probably be obtained of the back though it seems unlikely there is actually a nerve root being pinched since you are not complaining of back pain or burning sensations higher up. Having said that I have definitely seen people with these sorts of complaints and nothing of significance in the way of pain or discomfort with clear and present compression in the back so that is not totally impossible at this time.

In terms of treatment there really isn't anything specific that treats NUMBNESS as a symptom unless pain accompanies OR we can find a specific cause such as B12 deficiency, Vit. D deficiency, folate deficiency, liver or kidney problems, thyroid disorder, or evidence of diabetes mellitus. There are other laboratory tests that could be obtained but for the time being the ones I've listed above may be sufficient to start with just to get some preliminary numbers.

I wish you all the best and hope this information has served your needs. If you would like to respond to any of what I've written I'd be happy to have a bit more of a conversation of your condition.

If what I've told you has given you sufficient information for you to rock 'n roll so you'll have a better idea of what to expect when you seek out a medical professional who can help you then, can I ask you to provide some written feedback of this encounter with a STAR RATING?

Also, I'd greatly appreciate it if you'd CLOSE THE QUERY on your end which will signal to the network that they are able to file and archive the case for future reference.

Please consider addressing any specific concerns in the future on your medical condition to myself (DARIUSH SAGHAFI, MD) on this network and I will be happy to get you further information which may be of help.

This query required 25 minutes of physician specific time to review, research, and document for final draft and envoy.

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