what is it ?
 

Hello. I'm new here, and if I do something wrong, let me know.

I'm needing help. I've been to several doctors with mixed dx.
The foot doctor says it's metatarsala.
Another doctor says it's tarsal tunnel.
my GP believes it's diabetic neuropathy.

I have numbness in both feet at the same time, one foot is worse than the other. In addition, the feet are very sensitive. The area in both feet have
grown larger in the past week.

In the last few days it has gotten worse. I have also developed a painfull
lumbar spine.

I've had xray, and the foot dr said metatarsala
I had a nerve conduction test run, and they said tarsal tunnel, and
no diabetic neuo damage
my gp says it's diabetes, due to high blood sugar numbers
I had physical theropy. I quit after a month since I could not affor the
$600 a month cost. They thought it was odd that both feet
and thought it might be higher like in the the spine.

At this point something needs to be done. I contacted the regional
neuro's......both were looking at booking appoints into march april !!

I don't know if I should do a MRI or a nerve conduction test from the spine
down, the other was knee down.
The GP is annoyed with dealing with it.

what to do and what is it ????

thank you !

Considerations
 

Have you been a poor diabetic patient? If numbness in feet is foremost rather than flexing or extension pain, then it sounds neuropathic. Do you know what your b-12 number is? Things to do comes first, what is it isn't so easy. IMO I would gain glucose control and find out b-12 number. 400 is low end of acceptable, shoot for 1000. As you learn more, you can use the search function here and read others experiences. Also I used Mortons Epsom Salt Lotion on the tender tops of my feet. Good Luck, Ken in Texas. P. S. There seems to be a more test results pointing to tarsal but would tarsal spread to include Lumbar?

Hello and thanks for reply.
The Dr that did nerve conduction test said
It was not diabetic neuropathy, all nerves
Worked and none were slow.

In addition the numbness is on the
Bottom frount of the foot and toes
But not the top of the foot.

Have had bouts of gout. One Dr
Said there was some arthritis and
Some osteoarthritis.

Also been tested for rheumatoid arthritis
And lupus....both neg.

But my sed rate was high at 31
Also platelets are slightly low.

Yes, use metformin, but supplement
With b complex.

b-12 supplementation
 

I also used Metformin for years and I guess it blocked my b-12 absorbtion from my food. You might check and see if your b-12 supplement is the methylated type. There is a "sticky" here that will cover all b-12 questions. There is still a possibility that b-12 deficiency could be causing your symptoms. There is another test that tells if you are not able to absorb EVEN the methylated formula due to genetic circumstances. Read the stickie and you can search for "absorbtion". Good Luck, Ken in Texas.