My last neuro visit ended with him telling me to be very careful about my feet since I do not have all of the feeling in them that I should. I tend to get dumbstruck and don't ask the appropriate questions like how much feeling have I lost, any certain areas that I should pay special attention to, etc.
So, I've checked my feet daily since the neuro visit. What I notice is at times (not always) the soles are purplish-red instead of normal flesh color, and I have a spot on my big toe (smaller than a pencil eraser) that looks like it's deep within the tissue and is purplish in color also. I've asked to be referred to a podiatrist so that they can look at what I'm talking about, but won't get a call-back from gp office until tomorrow at best (having a chest film read to make sure my pneumonia went away so I'm sure they'll just combine the call).

Anyway, my question is should I be concerned about this spot on my toe? I'm not diabetic or pre-diabetic but since neuro cautioned me on this I want to make sure this isn't the start of a sore. Feel free to say I'm borrowing trouble on this one if thats the case. I've just never paid that much attention to the tootsies...maybe this kind of thing is common. Thanks

I don't have an answer for you but if there is something that bothers you and doesn't seem normal, don't be afraid to do exactly what you've done. You might be saving yourself trouble down the line. It may turn out to not be a big deal at all but you won't know that until they look at it. It's exactly what I would have done.

I agree fully with Jarrett22. Have everything checked by your doc pertaining to you legs and feet and any other areas affected by PN. If it concerns you then have it checked. It's always better safe than sorry.

I am another one who agrees with Jarrett she may not be amused,but
wise. I just took a look see at my feet,oh my i think i see what you
mean. hmmm now you have got me curious. When you don't have much
feeling in your feet it's easy to get up and fall. Many of the Neuros
have you lift you feet or foot in marching movement,lift up and down
so you don't trip. I wonder if that's what he means. Why not e-mail
or call he nurse and ask what he mean't. I question them until
they scream. Sue

I would take a blue-purple area without feeling in my feet VERY seriously.

I don't think it's that common. How do you know that you're not diabetic or pre-diabetic? What is your fasting glucose level? Have you had a glucose stress test? Also, look up side effects on all the medication you are taking, prescription and over-the-counter. I look things up at www.rxlist.com . You might see some drug causing a side effect of poor circulation or tissue damage. For example, a drug for arthritis like Methotrexate could cause your symptoms.

Is there a lot you're not telling us? Are you healthy in general? Have you had recent cancer/radiation treatment/chemotherapy? Is your weight under control? Do you eat healthy? Are you an angry, fearful, tense, or stressed-out person. Do you drink alcohol or use other psychoactive drugs to excess? Do you smoke? Any and all these things would affect your feet and nerves. We have very knowledgeable people active in this forum, but absence some vital information, their advise can be wildly off base...i.e. the more you divulge here, the better quality the response will be.

You have a right to a diagnosis and treatment plan, and the reasons for that diagnosis and plan. You also have a right to all your medical records. Most offices are happy to provide them no charge within reason. Your recent blood tests and neuro report are reasonable. Asking them to duplicate a thousand pages is not.

A good way for you to precede now would be to 1) get to a doctor soon, 2) get copies of your recent testing and your recent neurological report, 3) then go to Liza Jane's website at http://www.lizajane.org/ and start plugging in the numbers, and 4) learn all you can (our "Stickies" section has a wealth of knowledge and wisdom). The internet and Google makes knowledge available to us that would have been extremely difficult to get just a few years ago.

People lose their feet, and it's very hard to establish malpractice in court. Much better for you to be knowledgeable and proactive to get this dealt with.

Meanwhile, be careful. I wouldn't soak in hot water, walk much, wear tight shoes, or stand much until finding out what's wrong. I don't see how soaking your feet in cool to luke-warm Epsom salts foot baths and elevating your feet and legs a lot could hurt, and might help a lot.

Weekends and summer tend to be slow on this forum, so be patient if you don't get many responses.

in their feet SHOULD treat their feet as if they have a severe Diabetic Neuropathy.
Why? Because you do not feel any of the normal boo's bumps or real bangs to your feet the way they should be 'registered' and then treated. Broken Foot? Didn't know until it was infected and swollen three times normal?
Cut that turns infected? Then it's off to the rehab 'treatment' clinics or goodness knows what for goodness KNOWS what...
Touch your feet at least twice a day, check them with a mirror as well as touch, or Like Melody...have someone else check them. It's an issue where well, would an infection not noticed resulting in amputation [worst scenario-but, does happen] be any better or easier? Check, double check, see the rite doc 'checkers' making sure the skin is soft, supple and not blistering or whatever that is NOT RIGHT.
Of Course, finding perfect shoes, is and will always be an issue...PT to help build up foot and toe tone is essential as well as learning to use your body in the RIGHT ways that help compensate for other deficits in the nerve-feedback categories...It takes lots of work, practice and a heap of MIND over MATTER mental applications! This whole PN issue is NOT and will not EVER be a vacation! I surely wish we all could camp out on some tropical perfect beach w/sand that has no 'sharp' things or the like in it for a month.
How about we all poll as to which 'perfect beach' it should be?
My top two are USVI-Megans Bay and Nags Head, NC...Others? Well, we can set up the perfect dream picture, cant' we? - j

I don't always put things the way I want. The above quote is how my neuro feels about pn feet and why I'm checking them, babying them, etc. My question is mostly about the spot on my toe...is this a precursor to an ulcer if anyone knows what that looks like? Also wondered if anyone else had noticed the color of their soles being a weird color.

Wings, I didn't realize I should have put in more background info. As far as being not diabetic or pre-diabetic, bloodwork (most recently tested last week my request) has all come back in good shape. Numbers are hard for me so if you want a hard number on what the test results were I'll have to post back...I had a gm seizure several years ago and my language skills were impaired (but Thank God for crosswords which helped me at least get some of it back) and what little ability to retain numbers I had at that time went away. Numbers are almost a foreign language for me now It makes things very interesting at work although I have learned to write them down and carry them with me. I've also had the deal where they use bp cuffs on all limbs and was told my circulation is good/normal. I've had numerous mri's, ct scans, x-rays, emg, ncv, etc.

In general I have high bp which is regulated by meds. Cholesterol is being controlled by diet and exercise, although I still need to lower that some more. I no longer fit into my "skinny jeans" but hopefully I'm not ready for the fire dept. to have to dismantle the house to get me outside. This spring had an ovarian cyst and ovary removed and have had an issue with allergic reactions to ibuprofen and tylenol. Had back injections last fall in an effort to stop the pain. Most recently have had pneumonia. Other than that I have always been very healthy. Had never had surgery (except for c-section birth) until ovary and mass was removed this year. For some reason the drs are always surprised at that...makes me think that surgery for various reasons are pretty common? Have had some skin cancers removed but am not surprised they would pop up since I'm fair complected and have spent 40 some odd years in the sun.

Before my feet started hurting I took no meds. Now I take close to Anna Nicole porportions of pills daily which makes me very sad. Neuro says my pn is most likely genetic. Insurance won't pay for the genetic testing and I'm still on the fence on whether or not to go forward and pay for the test myself. I have always had hammer toes but now my foot is drawing up worse...just one more thing I want pod. to give me input on. Grandmother and an aunt had hammertoes too. They both had surgery for that, but until now mine have always been managable with deep toed shoes. At least I know the lack of feeling is on the sole and not tops of toes or those darn corn/callous things I'm getting now wouldn't hurt so much. I believe the metanx I take and anodyne therapy helped reduced for the most part the burning I had been experiencing and have had many good days since starting that early this summer. I also wear orthotics which help with arch discomfort.

PN has given me pause about several things in my life. Not only do I need the pain to go away just 'cause, but also because I'm a retail manager and expected to spend at least 10 hour days walking on concrete and also because my passion in life has always been horses. Horses and pn feet don't necessarily go well together. I'm finding my reflexes on getting out of the way are not as sharp as I would like. PN is making me reevaluate a lot of things.

The comment about using a marching step to walk was interesting since I have noticed that is something I naturally do in order to get around safely.

Thanks for your input folks. I do check back, but it is usually only oncea day or so since work and the ponies (in addition to family) limit my computer time. Have a great day!

Possum:

Have you have had a spinal tap. That's how Alan found out his PN is auto-immune. It didn't hurt one bit because the guy knew what he was doing, and used a fluroscope to see what he was doing. It was no big deal.

When they found protein in Alan's spinal fluid, that made him a candidate for IVIG.

I'm just curious. You've had blood work, but have you had a spinal tap. (lumbar puncture).

If you've indicated this before, sorry, I missed the post.

Melody

No spinal tap. Had bloodwork done that neuro said showed everything (and I don't remember exactly what everything included without digging it up, but I know arthritis and Lupus were ruled out) was within normal ranges so auto-immune was ruled out. Did Alan show normal ranges in the bloodwork?

My toes becoming claw-like instead of hammer-like is what I believe made him suggest the genetic test. Or, maybe it was just to give me something to do until my next appointment.

Alan has had more blood work done, than anyone I know. He was once hospitalized for a rash from head to toe, and they had no clue (it was actually an alergic reaction to celebrex), but they did more blood test on that man, well, more than they had ever done before.

Then, after he went to the neuro who specialized in PN, he had the specific PN blood work.

But the one thing he never had was the spinal tap, and once he got that, because it showed protein, that's when she said "AHA, this is indicative of auto-immune. He has his next IVIG next week. She said it has improved his balance. Really does nothing for his pain level. The only thing that alleviates his pain is when he is not sitting down, or sleeping. If he walks, then the blood goes to his toes and he has no pain. But because of a foot ulcer, he can't walk that well. But he has the oft-loading shoe and we shall see what happens next.

PN's a real bummer, this I know!!!

Mel