Pins and needles saga - secondary Reynauds anyone?

Hi - this pins and needles is ongoing and worsening so that my whole body is tingling madly now. It's not as itchy any more though but it is really freaking me out! I keep forgetting to mention to my GP that I've been getting Reynauds symptoms - especially now the weather is turning up here -not that it's actually cold because it isn't but it is very windy and autumnal. I mentioned it to my rheumy though and he just nodded as if it was all part and parcel of this RA thing.

I looked up Reynauds earlier and found a bit about it where it describes pins and needles as one of the symptoms that go with restricted circulation. I am very new to this icy cold fingers business and can't see that it would cause such widespread pins and needles but am really clutching at straws a bit now because I'm scared of the neurological things.

My GP tested me for B12, MTX (liver and wbcs) and thyroid and said he'd get back to me if anything obvious came up and he hasn't so I'm assuming that he's eliminated all these from the picture now as they are all done on the day and he's pretty good at checking them usually.

I'm now off the Hydoxichloraquine (HCQ) for week to see if that might be causing the pins and needles but we both felt this unlikely as I've been taking it since early April and been fine on it.

I emailed the physio woman who stands in as rheumy nurse up here and had a reply back from her today saying that she forwarded it to my rheumy who says he thinks it's very unlikely that the HCQ would be cause pins and needles and he thinks my GP has taken all the obvious tests and he would be interested to be kept informed about the outcome of these tests. He suggests when I go back on the HCQ I go on half the dose at 200mg - not sure why but perhaps it's what they call a maintainance dose.

I'm also now getting a return of the hot flushes in my limbs that brought me here to begin with. I've been having them for ages - about 2 years - and have always felt they go with RA or menopause but am now wondering if they might be linked with something neurological instead or with the Reynauds or meno or is it all connected perhaps? Sorry to keep asking - I am trying not to get in a tizz about all this but failing abysmally! I will see my GP again on Monday morning for a review. Anyone else have Reynauds and have these kind of symptoms too?

[Terrpist]

Your thyroid can cause the hot and cold thing.I didn't find my nodules on my thyroid until I went to an endocrinologist .Pinns and needles could be a pinched nerve?

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Yes but not all over surely? I am hypothyroid but my GP checked my levels for T4and TSH or whatever they look for so I don't think it can be thyroid related. But thanks for the suggestion anyway. TT x

[thekeys46]

Pins and needles and muscle twitching are ongoing problems for me. My hands are never cold though, quite the opposite, always hot. You are lucky that you can have feedback from your rheumatologist. I am still waiting for the promised phone call from the rheumy nurse.

Hope you manage to get sorted soon,

Lottie xx

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OOps wrong link there so I deleted it! Thanks Lottie - I know it took a while to get this system of communication working for me as I was just diagnosed and abandoned by all but my GP - but then I realised that the physio in my choir had an email address and she was described by the rheumy as being our rheumy nurse/ contact so I discovered that I could email her and she would pass them on directly and then relay his message back to me - brilliant really - almost worth putting up with the icy fingers for (it's blooming cold a lot of the time!)

Now here's the news - I researched this pins and needles and had a hunch that it might link with my menopause so I went on the Menopause Matters website and someone posted this for me;

dailymail.co.uk/health/arti...

Brilliant stuff for me - does it relate to you too perhaps Lottie? If not then you should see your GP and ask to be referred to a neurologist maybe? Sorry if you've been down this route and hit a brick wall - I lose track of everyone's stories often. Tilda xxx

[cathie]

I really hope this will either go away or youll find the cause

Xx

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Thanks - I'm 90% sure now that hormonal changes are the cause and going to drink loads of water. I'm not a daily Mail reader but am really grateful for this because it really does make sense to me (the first para about meno and ants crawling under the skin I mean). Tilda x