Is this cmt

[xxyy]

I have slot of pain in my hands my mom and several other family members have cmt could my pain be because I have it to

[HorshamMalc]

Hi I have type 1a CMT, my fingers are curled inward and cannot be straightened, except by using the other hand, which is a common CMT symptom. I have no pain except when I try to straighten one particular knuckle joint. My GP thinks this may be due an old injury rather than CMT.

Do your CMT relatives get pain in their hands? CMT causes so many different symptoms, even in members of the same family, the only way to tell for sure if you have it is by getting a genetic test done.

Hope this helps.

[Amanita]

Hi, Xxyy

HorshamMalc is right about CMT causing very varied symptoms, and also suggesting you ask your family about hand pain.

However, I haven't heard personally about pain in ones hands being the first thing you notice. Typically, your feet and lower legs are affected first, and hands and wrists later. This is because CMT affects your peripheral nerves (the nerves outwith your spinal cord and brain) which deliver instructions from your brain to your muscles to move, and information from your body back to your brain (e.g. that you have just touched something hot, soft, sharp, etc) As CMT increasingly damages these nerves , the further the message has to travel, the more affected it becomes - hence the feet being furthest from the brain are usually affected before the hands. And it is a reduction of feeling and ability to move your extremities which are typical, though many people with CMT unfortunately do experience neuropathic pain as well.

People with CMT often develop drop foot (inability to lift the front part of ones feet) and can also have problems with balance.

Do you know what type of CMT your relatives have, and whether their symptoms developed during childhood or later on? As HorshamMalc says, the only definitive test is a genetic one, but as it is very expensive, a neurologist will not commission one until he/she is pretty sure you have the disease.

I hope that you will be able to find out what is causing the pain in your hands - and that it is something that can be sorted for you, rather than CMT.