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tgengine Asked September 2017

Wife has hot and cold flashes in her face and feels "ice water" in her veins in arms and legs. What could this be?

Serious question. My wife 58. Has what she describes as excruciating cold spots in her legs and arms and face. She says like ice water running through her veins at times. Not all the time. Drs have no idea. He had a TIA this year had complete stem to stern checks MRIs cat scans etc.... cardio check ups. She does have hypertension and on meds for that. She was diagnosed with fibromylagia about 20 years ago which is brought on by stress. She only complains of joint pain with that. She has had neurologists, cardio docs check her out and no one knows why. She will lay in the evening with a hot pad on her face due to the cold in her face. When she is buys she is OK but when she stops about every evening it flares up. I think it is fibromylagia. Thoughts? She is not over weight, eats well. does not smoke or drink heavily.

freqflyer Sep 2017
tgengine, I was thinking that same thing as Barb above regarding menopause, as that can do quite a number on one's internal thermostat. A good GYN can help your wife with that issue.

Regarding hypertension, I have that, and knock on wood the only side effect from the meds was being so sleepy. It took some fine tuning to get the right balance.

Guestshopadmin Sep 2017
TG, it could be thyroid. It could be menopause. It could be diabetes. It could be a new symptom of fibro brought on by the relentless stress of your household that you have described. It could be related to additional TIA's happening. Pain is the body's way of saying, hey something is very wrong here. You don't say what types of doctors she currently is being treated by - but sometimes you keep having to check around. My husband had a parathyroid problem that was initially diagnosed as a heart condition due to calcium and potassium. We found the right doctor, got it properly diagnosed and surgery to correct parathyroid overproduction, and his back problems due to SEVERE BONE LOSS due to parathyroid have virtually disappeared. He had osteopoenia due to parathyroid that was giving him bones of 85 year old woman (doc comment). Just like you might not use the first contractor to fix your house or repair car, sometimes you have to find a doctor that specializes in your problem.

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tgengine Sep 2017
Yes, she has been still is in menopause (personal summers she calls them). I am wondering if it is related. She has consulted many docs on this. No one can figure it out. Asked her this AM, it is still there. Some days it is worse than others. I have asked her to revisit it with her doctors.

BarbBrooklyn Sep 2017
TG, has your wife been through menopause ( I'm assuming yes, but never assume....)

BarbBrooklyn Sep 2017
Jessie, you are SO right about that, and three still many docs who are quick to ascribe what any female patient has to stress. Now, we know that this wife is currently under a lot of stress, but I'm sure there is a physical cause underlying.

JessieBelle Sep 2017
I re-read it and saw that the doctors had no idea. It sounds uncomfortable, so I wouldn't let the lack of dx from one doctor stop me from getting help. Doctors are used to thinking about common ailments and often miss things, particularly in women. It hasn't been long since doctors figured all female ailments were emotional or related to their female cycle. :-/

BarbBrooklyn Sep 2017
TG, have we given you any good ideas?

cwillie Sep 2017
I have no clue, but it sounds like some sort of neuropathy.

JessieBelle Sep 2017
This is something for her to talk to her doctor about. Does she have any pain with the feelings, or is it just hot and cold? Her doctor may want to check her for reflex sympathetic dystrophy (RSD) because of the symptoms. This isn't a very common disease, so many doctors are not familiar with it. I hope that it isn't RSD, but it would be good to have a doctor check. Has she talked to her GP about it?

Katiekate Sep 2017
Those TIAs are an issue.

You know that each stroke kills some brains cells ... right? Even a TIA kills some cells. Not a lot...sort of like pin holes in the brain,

But, just like throwing darts at a board blindfolded...sooner or later you are not going to miss. Sooner or later the continuing TIA are going to damage areas that control essential functions.

I saw this with my Mom. Each episode cost a little bit more...but, also other systems were failing too with the loss of the brain function that controls it.

BarbBrooklyn Sep 2017
Bumping this up, TG. Would you consider another neurologist's opinion, perhaps one at an academic medical center?

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