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What Do Episodes Of Voice Change And Face Distortion In A 74 Year Old Suggest?
Question: Okay, my husband is 74, in really great health, no smoking or drinking. He has "episodes" occasionally wherein his face becomes somewhat distorted, voice changes a little and lips seem to work strangely. He says he feels his hair on his neck go up. He has had two today and he was talking to our dog and I heard the change in his voice. He went back to normal pretty quickly. O, and he feels a cool flush. He has grfeat BP reading, actually on the lower side
Brief Answer:
Read below.
Detailed Answer:
I read your question carefully and I understand your concern.
One possibility which should be looked into for those episodes is transient ischemic attack, meaning episodes of transient lack of blood flow to the brain, in this case from your description should be his posterior brain areas. They could be in the setting of narrowing of the vertebral arteries (the blood vessels supplying those areas), most common cause for which are atherosclerotic plaques. For that reason I believe some sort of vessel imaging like duppler ultrasound (the cheapest) or angio CT or angio MRI (the best tests) are recommended to check for such plaques. If scheduling them takes some time I would take low dose aspirin in the meantime for prevention anyway.
Other possibilities would include a metabolic abnormality such as altered blood sugar or electrolyte abnormalities for which a routine chemical blood panel is also in order. Seizures would be another possibility, but less likely in my opinion, to be considered only if all the other tests come out fine.
I remain at your disposal for other questions.
Read below.
Detailed Answer:
I read your question carefully and I understand your concern.
One possibility which should be looked into for those episodes is transient ischemic attack, meaning episodes of transient lack of blood flow to the brain, in this case from your description should be his posterior brain areas. They could be in the setting of narrowing of the vertebral arteries (the blood vessels supplying those areas), most common cause for which are atherosclerotic plaques. For that reason I believe some sort of vessel imaging like duppler ultrasound (the cheapest) or angio CT or angio MRI (the best tests) are recommended to check for such plaques. If scheduling them takes some time I would take low dose aspirin in the meantime for prevention anyway.
Other possibilities would include a metabolic abnormality such as altered blood sugar or electrolyte abnormalities for which a routine chemical blood panel is also in order. Seizures would be another possibility, but less likely in my opinion, to be considered only if all the other tests come out fine.
I remain at your disposal for other questions.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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