Numbness is a feeling of mild paralysis, which usually occurs in part or all of a limb. This is what you can feel when you sleep on your arm, for example, and when you wake up having trouble moving it.

Numbness is often accompanied by changes in perception and signs such as pins and needles, tingling, or a slight burning sensation.

These abnormal sensations are called “paresthesias” in medicine.

Most often, numbness is temporary and not serious, but it can also be a sign of a more serious pathology, in particular neurological. Such symptoms should therefore not be overlooked.

Numbness and associated tingling or tingling is usually due to compression, irritation or damage to one or more nerves.

The source of the problem can be in the peripheral nerves, and more rarely in the spinal cord or brain.

To understand the origin of numbness, the doctor will be interested in:

• their location: is it symmetrical, unilateral, vague or well-defined, “migratory” or fixed, etc.?
• their persistence: are they permanent, intermittent, do they appear in certain precise situations?
• associated signs (motor deficit, visual disturbances, pain, etc.)

In general, when the numbness is intermittent and its location is not fixed or well defined, and there are no serious symptoms associated with it, the cause is most often benign.

Having persistent numbness, which affects well-defined areas (such as the hands and feet) and is accompanied by specific symptoms, may indicate the presence of a potentially serious illness.

Peripheral neuropathies, for example, refer to a group of diseases characterized by damage to the peripheral nerves. The signs are mostly symmetrical and start at the extremities. There may also be motor symptoms (cramps, muscle weakness, fatigue, etc.)

Some of the possible causes of numbness:

• carpal tunnel syndrome (affects the hand and wrist)

• vascular or neurovascular pathologies:
  • stroke or TIA (transient ischemic attack)
  • vascular malformation or brain aneurysm
  • Raynaud’s syndrome (disorder of blood flow to the extremities)
  • vascularite

• neurological diseases
  • multiple sclerosis
  • amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
  • Guillain-Barré syndrome
  • spinal cord injury (tumor or trauma, herniated disc)
  • encephalitis

• metabolic pathologies: diabetes

• effects of alcoholism or taking certain medications
• deficiency of vitamin B12, potassium, calcium
• Lyme disease, shingles, syphilis, etc.

Unpleasant sensations, numbness, tingling and pins and needles can wake up at night, interfere with daily activities and interfere with walking, among others.

They are also, quite often, a source of concern.

The fact that the sensations are reduced can also, on occasion, favor accidents such as burns or injuries, since the person reacts less quickly in the event of pain.

The solutions obviously depend on the underlying causes.

Management therefore requires first establishing a clear diagnosis, in order to be able to treat the pathology as much as possible.