pain in left arm and tingling in fingers

by karl
(sheffield england)

Hello. For some weeks now I have had an ache like pain in my left arm. Under my armpit and my shoulder blade; all down my forearm and tingling in my left hand fingers. The most tingling is on the tip of my index finger and middle finger. I get a slight numbness in my pinky.


If I look upwards my arm hurts worse. I also get a slight tingling in my left leg and it seems to be in timing with my pulse. I feel the leg tingle more when i lay down; if i make my heart beat faster then i feel the tingle go faster all the way down my leg into my foot. i have had a heart attack back in 2011 but no stent was needed.

I also have bouts of sciatica whitch left me with some loss of sensation in my left leg and small toe on left foot. I'm not sure if the pain and tingling in my arm and hand is linked to heart condition or sciatica.

I worry about this all the time and dont like to waste the gp's time. I did tell the doc about tingling in my leg but did not seem to be very interested and sent me on my way. I would be grateful for any advice. Thank you.

Hello Karl,
I doubt this has anything to do with your heart, and unlikely to be connected to the tingling in your leg unless you have very severe spinal stenosis in the neck; that's rare.

The clearest feature is the increase in pain in your arm when you look upwards; that strongly suggests the problem is in your neck. What's a little unclear is the tingling pattern in your hand; the second and third fingers don't belong to a specific dermatome.

What's needed first is a careful and thorough examination, including an x-ray of your neck. Don't leave it, or your arm will become weak as well.

Dr B

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