Bad Biopsy
 

I just had a sureal nerve biopsy, I was told there would be no pain. Im in terrible pain, it feels like I have pain shooting from the site to my foot. Does anyone know what this is?

Actually, it is considered phantom pain, because the nerve has been cut and a section removed for the biopsy. This interrupts the nerve pathway to the foot (anything past the point of biopsy) and can cause severe phantom pain. This is common with amputees. Cutting the nerve where nothing below gets a signal produces the same scenario as amputating (in regards to nerves).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phantom_pain

You should contact the doctor that did the biopsy and inform them. They will likely prescribe something to help relieve that pain. I'll be honest, it is difficult to relieve but mine did fade over time.

BTW, sural nerve biopsies are very invasive and commonly cause this type of severe pain. The numbness involved with this procedure (because the nerve is severed) is usually permanent. Whoever told you there would be no pain was not honest.

I hate to be the bringer of bad news, but:

This test is no longer recommended, because it can lead to
permanent pain and damage to that nerve.

Here is one post from here:
http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/sh...t=sural+biopsy

If you use the search engine here, you will find many other posts:
use sural biopsy as a key word in the search box. I cannot post a search result because our software does not keep it accurately so it won't post correctly. Each poster has to do their own search.

I see en bloc and I were posting at the same time! ;)

My neuro doc says that I may need a nerve biopsy to look for vasculitis or amylodosis. I dont know what I should do about that. Can these be determined with some other less invasive procedure?

My surgeon at the VA said that there would be numbness, their could be a painful tumor. But the surgeon was against it. My neuro doc wanted after MrsD mentioned the fire could. it made sense but not to him.

The skin biopsies are now replacing the sural type, for sensory neuropathies.

Diagnosing amyloidosis, is often done with a fat biopsy off the abdomen, I thought. It is least damaging there.
http://www.cedars-sinai.edu/Patients...yloidosis.aspx

Here is a good site on diagnosing vasculitis:
http://www.hopkinsvasculitis.org/vas...ng-vasculitis/

I go to a pain management clinic sense I've had neuropathy cause ¿VA just won't do it. Excuse. my spelling my phone tries to do it for me. So the next day my pain was horrible so I called the VA And she said there shouldn't be so she recommened

Not a surprise
 

Do you think I will have to have a muscle biopsy ?
My neuropathy starting to progess like Im fatigued all the time. My legs and feet both jerk even when I sleep. I know my Emg came. back severe neuropathy. My doctor won't listen to me when i tell I think it's. caused by smoke inhalation. The doctor said all these possibilities we will never find. the cause .

So know I have severe neuropathy, plantar fachitis and now I have horrible phantom pain. I am looking for help but help is making me worse. My neurolgist has made no effort. to help me. My neuropathy is progressing which he agreed , he said if we don't do something fast I might be able to walk. There has to be a way to stop this pain its almost debilitating right now.

I don't understand why they even did the biopsy if your EMG came back showing severe neuropathy...what did they think they would find?

The skin biopsy would have been more helpful if they were looking for small fiber neuropathy.

Not sure why they would do a muscle biopsy. Do you have muscle weakness?

You need to be proactive with the doctors and ask what they are looking for and why the additional tests if they have already confirmed the neuropathy.