Weakness In Arm, Movement Difficult, No Pain. No Prior Illness. Please Tell What This May Be.

Posted on Mon, 11 Jun 2012

Question: weak arm/wrist/hand

For several weeks now i have noticed a weakness/tiredness in my left arm/wrist/hand. Last night it was so weak i couldnt hold a fork to cut my daughters pasta up. Now im scared. It seems to have started in my pinky and ringfinger. Movement became difficult, then its getting worse quick...I cant cut pasta. i cant wash dishes..eg hold a plate in my left hand and wash it with my right. The pressure from my right hand on the plate is too much. I have no strength at all. Please tell me what this may be. I am seeing my GP in 2 weeks. I have no other pain anywhere like back or neck.I have no prior illnesses.I am 37 and female with one child..Please help me. i am scared. Its my hand not my arm...thanks ..

Answered by Dr. Shiva Kumar R (1 hour later)

Hello,

Weakness of the left hand which is for several weeks could be due to problems any where from the peripheral nerves of the left hand to the cortex (grey matter) over the right side of the brain. It can occur due to simple cause like stroke and tumors.

One can localise the site of the problem by a good neurological examination.

I am sorry you are dealing with this frustrating concern and I hope you can find the reason for the weakness of the left hand soon with the help of your Neurologist. I encourage you to consult a competent physician / neurophysician as early as possible.

I thank you again for submitting your question. I hope you found my response to be helpful and informative.

Regards,

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Prasad

Follow up: Dr. Shiva Kumar R (26 hours later)

I also seem to have massive twitching in my body....I was watching tv last night and the twitch was so bad i accidently threw the remote control all the way over the other side of the room..These are involuntry whole body spasms...ive had these and they are getting worse, more frequent and bigger...Ta..

Answered by Dr. Shiva Kumar R (17 hours later)

Hi,
Thanks for the follow up.

The description of the twitch looks more likely like a cortical myoclonus where jerks appear to some external stimuli like touch, sound and so on.

Again this points out the cause could be in the spinal cord or in the brain.

Rarely this can be due to severe stress and lack of sleep. I thank you again for submitting your question. You will need to get examined by a neurologist.

Wishing you good health.
Regards,

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Radhika