Tingling in the legs occurs when tired, wearing uncomfortable shoes. In pathological cases, tingling is determined with restless legs syndrome, polyneuropathy, obliterating lesions of the arteries and veins of the lower extremities. For diagnostic purposes, clinical and biochemical blood tests, instrumental imaging methods are prescribed: vascular ultrasound with dopplerography, CT angiography, radiography and MRI of the spine. Treatment of diseases accompanied by tingling in the legs includes medications (antiplatelet agents, antispasmodics, sedatives and anticonvulsants), physiotherapy methods. With vascular lesions, operations are performed to restore blood flow.
A tingling sensation bothers a person when wearing tight or ill-fitting shoes. The feet are constantly pinched, blood circulation worsens in them, which is manifested by tingling, discomfort when walking. The symptom is observed even at rest, and after removing uncomfortable shoes, the feeling of tingling or crawling persists for several more hours. Similar signs occur in women who often walk in narrow stiletto heeled shoes.
The second common reason is prolonged standing. By the end of the day, salespeople, waiters, hairdressers usually experience stabbing discomfort in the calf muscles and feet, which are caused by fatigue. The symptomatology is complemented by severe heaviness and pain during walking, the person complains that the legs are “buzzing”. Tingling, other unpleasant sensations disappear only after a long rest.
Excruciating tingling, numbness, itching and a feeling of crawling on the skin are typical for this disease. Symptoms are noted mainly at night, as a result of which a person constantly wakes up, cannot rest normally. At first, the stabbing sensations are localized in the area of the shins and are asymmetrical. Gradually, the process spreads to the hips and feet.
A person suffering from restless legs syndrome does not experience pain, but various paresthesias are painful for him. To get rid of tingling and discomfort, patients move their legs, bend them, turn and shake. At the onset of the disease, symptoms appear 15-3 minutes after going to bed and do not last long. Gradually, the duration of discomfort increases, it occurs even during the day.
The defeat of the nerve endings is initially manifested by symmetrical discomfort and tingling in the form of "socks". Gradually, the symptoms are replaced by soreness in the feet or a progressive decrease in tactile and pain sensitivity. Stitching sensations extend upwards to lower legs and thighs. Symptoms occur with metabolic polyneuropathies (diabetic, uremic, hepatic), toxic damage to peripheral nerves.
Tingling in the legs
With a pathological process in the lumbosacral spine, patients, as a rule, experience tingling, paresthesia in the legs. The most intense symptoms are expressed in the area of the buttocks and thighs. It is complemented by sharp “shots” of pain, which are provoked by awkward movements, turns and tilts of the body. Due to severe pain, patients walk with a slight bend, the back muscles are constantly tense.
Anemia is accompanied by coldness, tingling and heaviness in the legs. Symptoms occur with any type of pathology, but paresthesia and discomfort in the lower extremities are more specific for B12-deficiency and folate deficiency anemia. Also, patients are concerned about general symptoms: weakness and fatigue, shortness of breath during exercise, pallor and dryness of the skin.
The most common cause of tingling in the legs in the elderly is atherosclerosis obliterans. At first, discomfort affects only the feet. Patients notice slight numbness, goosebumps, slight stabbing pains. Gradually, the discomfort spreads to the calf muscles. In addition to tingling, excruciating burning of the skin develops, sharp pains when walking for long distances (intermittent claudication).
In addition to sensitive disorders, patients notice dryness and peeling of the skin, hair loss. The clinical picture is complemented by a change in the color of the skin of the legs: at first it turns pale and becomes ivory, and as the process progresses, it turns purple or cyanotic. If left untreated, tissues are affected by trophic ulcers and gangrene.
A more rare cause of discomfort in the legs is thromboangiitis obliterans (Winivarter-Buerger's disease). With this disease, patients feel tingling and increased sensitivity of the feet to cold, pain in the calves during long walking. Discomfort in the legs increases when wearing tight shoes, hypothermia. In the later stages of thromboangiitis, stabbing or burning pains are constantly felt.
Several specialists are involved in the examination of a patient complaining of tingling in the legs: a therapist, a neurologist, a vascular surgeon. During physical examination, attention is paid to the safety or absence of pulsation in the arteries of the legs, signs of venous stasis, trophic disorders. Pathognomonic symptoms (Lasega, Dejerine, Bekhterev) help to establish neurological problems. The following are used to make a clinical diagnosis:
Ultrasound of the vessels of the lower extremities
To prevent episodes of tingling feet, you need to choose the right size and comfortable shoes. For comfortable wearing shoes and boots with high heels, women are recommended to buy special insoles. To reduce discomfort after a long working day on your feet, you should take a warm bath (perhaps with essential oils), massage your feet and calves a little.
To improve blood circulation and innervation of the lower extremities, regular walking at a slow pace is suitable. Be sure to choose comfortable sneakers or boots, do not overexert yourself and do not try to walk at a too fast pace. To eliminate the tingling inherent in restless legs syndrome, patients are advised to give up alcohol and caffeine, take walks before bedtime, and develop their own ritual of falling asleep.
Treatment of tingling associated with obliterating diseases of the lower extremities includes antiplatelet agents, anticoagulants, and antispasmodics. The drugs improve the blood supply to the distal legs, relieve discomfort and soreness, and reduce the tingling associated with walking. Targeted delivery of drugs by subcutaneous or intravenous injections is practiced.
Therapy for restless legs syndrome or polyneuropathy includes psychotropic drugs. To relieve painful symptoms, herbal sedatives, benzodiazepine anticonvulsants, antidepressants and antipsychotics are prescribed. If the tingling interferes with sleep, modern sleeping pills are indicated. A course of B vitamins helps to improve neuromuscular transmission.
To eliminate paresthesia, physiotherapy techniques are widely used. With the local administration of drugs using electrophoresis or phonophoresis, pain and tingling pass faster. Exposure to UHF or magnetic waves improves blood circulation, has a trophic and anti-inflammatory effect. For vascular disorders, hyperbaric oxygenation, balneological procedures, and ozone therapy are used.
With obliterating processes in the vessels of the legs, minimally invasive interventions are often used. Endarterectomy, thrombectomy or stenting of the affected vessel quickly improves blood flow and eliminates unpleasant symptoms. In severe situations, bypass surgery, vessel prosthesis with synthetic material or autovein are prescribed. To reduce vascular spasm, a lumbar sympathectomy is performed.