Hello
I am new here and I need help in understanding my nerve problems.
I am a 65 year old Vietnam veteran under the care of the VA system.
I have been diagnosed with the following:
Type II Diabetes
Peripheral Neuropathy of lower extremities
Autonomic nerve dysfunction (Postural Hypotension)
Myathenia Gravis ( I believe this to be an incorrect diagnoses as I will explain)
Cervical Laminectomies at C3-C5
CAD
Sleep Apnea (On BPAP)
CABG X2
Hypertension
Tinnitus
And others that I do not believe are relevant to my question/questions.

1st question has to do with a recent exam, by a different VA Neurologist, that was ordered by my VA Neurologist.
After almost 3 years of me trying to get someone to check me for the muscle spasms (they occur all over my body and hammer away like a jack hammer, some times the same area continuously for day's and some times they spasm and then just lock-up like a cramp) I got the attention of my VA Neurologist, at my appointment in January, when I explained to him what was happening.
I informed him that I had grown accustomed to the spasm's and did not fell them every time unless it was a new one or when something was pressing against the area where it was occurring. He asked me where were they occurring the most and I said lately it has been in the back of my upper arms and shoulders. He placed his hand to the back of my upper arm and sure enough there were some muscle's that were hammering like a machine gun. I had not felt it until he placed his had there.
This got his attention and he scheduled the exam ( I had this exam done 2 years ago for Neuropathy). It was what was done in this exam, it was the shock & needle exam, that I have a question about. When the Neurologist doing the test looked at the paper work he asked why was I having the exam again when I had the same 2 years previously and I informed him that it was ordered by my VA Neurologist because I was having muscle spasm's.
In the process of testing me he would insert a needle in an area and instruct me to move a toe, leg, foot or arm, in a direction as far as I could. I would do this and he would demand that I move it further but I could not so he would take his hand and force further movement and he really worked hard at doing this until he seemed to be satisfied with the results he was monitoring of the test screen. He did this on upward movement of big toe, downward movement of knee, upward movement of foot and resisting the outward movement of my arm.
So, my question is, is this the correct way to test nerve conduction or should it be done testing the movement that I could do and not the movement that he forced the muscle's too?
He did inform me that there were no changes except that there was indication of upper arm nerve damage now. He is also the same person that did this exam 2 years ago.
My Neurologist had diagnosed me to have Myathenia Gravis prior to this test because he had asked me if I have had any weakness in my legs and I said that occasionally my left leg would turn into a noodle for an instant when walking. I have looked up the symptoms of Myathenia Gravis and the leg weakness is the only symptom listed that I have but it's not a continuous weakness.
I just had an event where I passed-out and a VA ER doctor has diagnosed me to have Vertebral Basilar Syndrome and I looked this up and the noodle leg as well as the other symptoms listed, I do have.

2nd question, I complained for over a year about me having a felling of passing out, when I bent over or squatted down to pick something up, and I was given a tilt table test by an outside Neurologist for the VA twice now and both times it was determine that I have Postural Hypotension and I was placed on Pyridostigmine Bromide.
I had also complained that when I looked up slightly my vision would start to turn white starting from my peripheral vision moving to the center of my vision and I would feel like I was about to pass-out. I would look down and it would pass. The cause for this has not been determined. This would only occur when I was standing.
I have had MRI's, MRA's, X-RAY's, ENT and CT's looking for the cause of this passing-out when standing but I had convinced myself that it was just another nerve problem that hadn't been diagnosed as yet. I am not sure know because I did pass-out, but I was sitting, just by looking up slightly and it happened real quick. All the other times I would feel it coming on and had time to look sown and stop it.
I now believe this may be a vascular problem that's gone undetected after the VA ER doctor put into his notes that I had Vertebral Basilar Syndrome.
My question is, are there nerve problems that can cause this passing out with just a slight backward movement of my head?