Good day, forum members and dear doctors.
Prehistory. At the end of October 2017, my lower back began to hurt. At first there was moderate pain, then it grew into a sharp, intolerable one. I also caught a cold, and when I sneezed and coughed, I tried to hang on a chair or table so that my back wouldn’t hurt so much. I live in Germany, so I first went to a therapist, he prescribed me Ibuprofen, which I choked on for 2 months, with absolutely no results. I took a referral and went to an orthopedist, he took an x-ray, prescribed Ibuprofen again, made a blockade, assured me that there was nothing wrong and gave me a referral for exercise therapy. Within 2 weeks the pain persists and begins to radiate to the right leg. I limp back to the therapist, she prescribes me the muscle relaxant Orthoton, along with Ibuprofen. After a few days, the pain becomes unbearable, it seemed to flow into the leg, I could neither stand nor walk, I could only lie on the floor without moving. They took me to the doctor, he gave me another injection, again Ibuprofen, which I was already gnawing on by the handful. By that time, my leg was numb and I couldn’t stand on my toes. I was also terribly sick. And then came the first session of exercise therapy, I went to class, at least just to explain that I couldn’t exercise. And oh miracle! An adequate person, a masseuse, when I told about my problem, suggested that Ibuprofen simply did not work on me, and recommended asking a therapist to prescribe Diclofenac for me. I immediately sent my husband to the pharmacy, and was only able to buy Voltaren, a small dosage of Diclofenac, the rest only by prescription. It's strict here. And that same evening the long-awaited relief came. The leg began to gradually release. Within a few days of taking diclofenac, the pain completely disappeared. But numbness, paresis and lameness remained.
With these symptoms I go back to the orthopedist, he immediately sends me to a neurosurgeon. On the same day I get an appointment and receive an appointment for an MRI and Cortisone for 3 days. A week later, a second appointment with MRI results, cortisone did not bring relief. And I am scheduled for surgery. They gave me time to think until the next morning, since it was before Christmas. In short, I refused and decided to look for other solutions. I called, searched, found out. I found a massage therapist who specializes in hernias. After a week of sessions, I began to notice that I was walking better. After the massage course, I went back to the neurosurgeon; she, seeing that the paresis had almost gone, said that now there was no indication for surgery.
Reality. There are no indications for surgery, but what to do with sensitivity? She's gone too! One buttock is smaller, the calf muscle is narrower, along the back of the leg, from the thigh to the toes, I don’t feel anything.
I am working on the paresis, but there is still a slight weakness. I can stand up on my toe and even jump.
Dear doctors, I’ve been reading the forum since November and saw that Neuromidin and Trental are prescribed to restore paresis. Please tell me, can these drugs help in my case?
The neurosurgeon prescribed only exercise therapy.
I don’t download MRI, I think since it has become much easier, it doesn’t make sense.
Thank you in advance for your help and advice!!!

Sensitivity in hands and feet

Today we will discuss a very unpleasant consequence of a stroke or vertebral fracture, namely loss of sensation in the arms and legs. This happens due to damage to special root processes that extend from the brain to the limbs.

Damage to the conductivity of the roots can be external, for example (pinched nerve, fracture of a vertebra) or internal (stroke, infection, compression).

Loss of sensation in the hands, in my observation, is more inconvenient than loss of sensation in the buttocks. I don’t mean immobility of the limbs, I mean the pads of the fingers.

In this situation, it is not convenient to do many things - your fingers do not feel objects, temperature (which is more dangerous - you can get burned and not feel it).

Sujok therapy can partially help with sensitivity in the hands and feet. fine motor skills exercises. cold air treatment (cryotherapy), heat treatment (mud therapy, azakerite), acupuncture. “Kuznetsov applicator” (ineffective).

In the sensitivity of the arms and legs, these methods will be most useful in the first months after a stroke and injury, as will the restoration of movements.

In rehabilitation centers there are special stands with various objects hanging on them, which you can drive up to at any time or approach and exercise.

There is an important nuance here: you must feel objects with your eyes closed in order to recognize them, thereby trying to restore tactile perception.

On my own behalf, I would like to add that sensitivity is unfortunately extremely difficult to restore. After 6 years, my right palm feels almost nothing, but it feels closer to the elbow; this didn’t exist before.

I also want to add that if you have any problems with your teeth, you can find out about dental implantation or all of them at once.

How to quickly restore sensitivity

In the process of sensitivity disturbance, the perception of irritability, the source of which is present in the external environment and in one’s own body, is lost. Sensory impairment can take a wide variety of forms, which occur for equally varied reasons, and even in cases of stroke. In mild cases, a person who has suffered a stroke may partially lose the sensitivity of his limbs; in the most difficult cases, the patient experiences paralysis.

You can quickly restore sensitivity if you start doing rehabilitation exercises for the limbs, start doing finger exercises, simple motor skills help improve brain function. If a person is not left paralyzed after a stroke, then these small exercises with fingers should be performed independently with the help of a healthy hand; in severe cases of the patient’s condition, the help of an outsider will be required.

Stress is a state when the natural calm of the human body is disturbed. In such stressful situations, you can make a decision that you will later regret. Taking the effective drug Tenoten will help you calm down and stop worrying about trifles.

How to regain sensitivity after a stroke

The sensitivity of the limbs will be restored if you work on them regularly; when you start doing the exercises, massage the fingers on the injured hand, and do the exercises on both hands. First, try to lightly rub your limbs, then start warming up. The duration of the rubbing procedure on each finger should continue for 20 seconds.

Rubbing will improve blood circulation in the injured limbs, now begin to lift your spread fingers one by one. While performing fine motor skills of the limbs, try to press your palms to the chest or abdomen, do the exercises in a way that is comfortable for you. Turn your hands over, press them to your body, bend each finger, and do finger exercises at least ten times.

Now press your palms to your body again, perform exercises with each finger spreading, with the little fingers on both hands at the same time, begin to make rotating movements. Rotate your fingers with each one, repeat the exercise five to ten times.

You can begin the main set of exercises only after the warm-up has been completed. A set of basic exercises to restore sensitivity will consist of squeezing an elastic ball, performing a lock, moving small objects from one place to another, etc. Depending on the well-being of the patients, as well as the degree of loss of sensitivity, it will not be superfluous for a person to practice assembling a construction set; gradually begin to perform exercises with plasticine with it. Such simple children's activities will work quite effectively to restore sensitivity and motor skills of the limbs.

After a stroke, the most difficult condition, there are cases when a person, after an attack of a stroke, completely or for a long time loses sensitivity, the patient may lose perception of the simplest things and loss of speech. Even if you are in such a difficult situation, you should never lose heart and stop the classes you have started, even when after several classes you were unable to repeat anything. It is recommended that everyone remember that only with persistence and effort is it possible to restore lost sensitivity. With the agreement of the doctor, the patient can begin to use physiotherapy. Physiotherapy can be carried out by applying a weak electrical impulse to the injured limb; with complex treatment, auxiliary therapy can produce a positive result.

Severe pain after a stroke - what to do?

Dad had a hemorrhagic stroke 10 months ago, that’s how many days have passed - one side is not working (left). And during these days, my dad’s arms and legs on the left side don’t move, but when we physically massage him, it hurts him to the point of tears.

A person is guided by his feelings. In any type of activity, loss of sensitivity, i.e., sensory sensations, leads to the need to use special techniques aimed at restoring them.
Ways to compensate for lost sensitivity. First of all, in case of loss of sensitivity, it is necessary to ensure the safety of the patient so that he does not receive injuries from collisions with objects, burns or other damage.
Compensatory techniques include:
- redistribution of the load from the affected limb to the healthy one;
- visual control of the movement and position of the injured limb;
- control of water temperature using a healthy limb;
- use of assistive devices for self-care;
- preventing contact of the affected limb with low and high temperatures, as well as with sharp objects;
- use of household items with large or built-in handles;
- change in hand position during prolonged use of tools;
- prevention of irritation, redness, swelling and excess pressure on the skin of the injured limb.
If such symptoms appear, you must:
- give your hand rest;
- treat irritations, blisters and wounds on the extremities to avoid infection and complications;
- Take care of your skin daily using oil massage to maintain softness and elasticity of the affected area.
Patients who have lost sensation as a result of a stroke should be given the opportunity to verify the loss of sensation and be shown safe techniques. It is useful to teach the patient to control the position of the affected limb visually and with the help of the healthy hand. However, it must be taken into account that the patient's learning may be impaired by cognitive impairment.
After injury and during the recovery period, nerve impulses arising from sensory stimulation of the injured hand take on a different character. Differences in sensitivity can be so significant that the patient is sometimes unable to correctly interpret his perceptions. Therefore, it is necessary to help him learn to evaluate his feelings in a new way.
The perception retraining program developed by A. Dellon contains the basics of the process of restoring sensitivity. The achieved results are assessed using appropriate tests.
Reduced hypersensitivity. If the patient perceives the irritants as very unpleasant, then before proceeding with the correction of sensations, it is necessary to reduce the sensitivity of the affected area, but only if there are no open or infected wounds.
Techniques to reduce hypersensitivity in affected areas include:
- massage;
- patting;
- lubricating the skin with lotion;
- rubbing the affected areas with a terry towel and fleecy cloth;
- holding objects made of various materials in hands;
- kneading the dough;
- modeling objects from clay;
- production of wicker products from ropes or cord (Fig. 2-1);
- stroking the affected area using various tissues;
- the use of household items with a surface that causes stronger tactile sensations.

Rice. 2-1. Basket weaving is one method of reducing hypersensitivity.

Sensitivity is reduced depending on its initial level, and the irritating effect of materials (rough properties) is gradually increased in strength, duration and frequency of exposure. It is also recommended to use a vibrating motion when immersing the limb in bulk materials such as rice, peas or corn.
Early period of retraining. First of all, at this stage, tactile stimuli of moving and stationary types, pressing touches are used. The patient must determine the location of their contact.
The moving tangential sensation is reproduced by stroking the affected surface with the edge of an eraser on a pencil or with a fingertip. At first, the patient simply watches the stimulus, and then, closing his eyes, concentrates his attention on it. After this, the patient opens his eyes to check the sensation. In conclusion, the patient describes his sensations in words, for example: I felt the movement of some soft object along my palm.
A similar procedure is carried out with a stationary touch. The edge of the pencil eraser applies pressure to the surface of the finger or palm in the place where sensitivity should be restored. The localization of touches is determined in a similar way. The patient should be warned that it is impossible to stimulate the injured arm with the healthy one, as this is accompanied by a double series of impulses entering the brain.
The patient is recommended to repeat these techniques 4 times a day for 5 minutes. For the procedure, you must choose a quiet room and avoid distractions. It is necessary to evaluate the dynamics of changes weekly and revise further goals when positive results are achieved.
Late period of retraining. After the techniques for perceiving tactile stimuli and determining the localization of touches have been worked out, they move on to the next period of retraining. The goal of this period is to restore the patient's ability to identify objects with their eyes closed.
The exercises are aimed at recognizing several different objects using tactile sensations. Initially, the exercises are carried out with familiar objects. The task is to pick up an object, examine it, and then close your eyes and feel it, focusing on tactile sensations. Having opened his eyes, the patient must again evaluate the object visually to confirm his sensations. It is helpful to invite the patient to describe in words what he felt. The next series of objects must differ in the nature of the material, in size, which must be smaller and smaller and require an increasingly subtle ability to differentiate. In conclusion, the patient should be recommended an activity that suits his capabilities.
It should be noted that there are other ways to identify sensory function. These include:
- recognition of the geometric shape of an object;
- recognition of the shape and size of various wooden cubes;
- sorting items by shape and nature of the material;
- selection of certain objects from the proposed group of objects (Fig. 2-2);
- difference in weight of objects;
- detection of objects hidden in sand or other bulk materials;
- composing words or numbers using wooden or cardboard letters or numbers (Fig. 2-3);
- filling in the missing places in the puzzle;
- performing actions with eyes closed.

Rice. 2-2. The use of mosaics allows you to increase tactile sensitivity.

Rice. 2-3. By recognizing raised numbers on cardboard, the patient can train sensory functions.

Improvement in sensory function can be judged by the number of correctly identified objects and the time spent on each determination.
To eliminate the consequences of neurological disorders, a combination of training of sensory and motor functions is often necessary. Elimination of abnormal movements and increased muscle tone makes it easier to correct sensitivity. Achieving results is facilitated by repeated repetition of all techniques until sensitivity is restored.