Tingling in arms and legs

Pins and Needles In Leg and Arms

I have been having tingling and pins and needles sensations in my arms and legs for several hours now. It is pretty much constant but it gets better then worse periodically. I took a bath and these feelings went away then returned shortly after the bath. I was wondering what could cause this and how concerned I should be. I don't have health insurance so I would like to know If this is something I should go to the hospital for or if it's something that can wait a couple of days until the free clinic is open. Also I don't know if this is relevant but 2 days ago I had sharp pains in my lower left abdomen and I went to the hospital where I had and ultrasound and a ct scan that didn't show any problems and I had no infection or anything serious that could be found so the doctor told me I probably had a ruptured ovarian cyst due to the location and onset of the pain. I also had pain in my left shin and then a few hours later I had the same pain in my right thigh the pain was in my inner thighs and felt like a sharp pain going down my thighs all the way to my knees. Since then these pains have mostly gone away but these strange sensations have developed. I would appreciate your opinion and advice. Thank you.

Answer: Pins and Needles In Leg and Arms

The majority of pins and needles in leg and arms settle without any need to investigate further and are due to temporary nerve entrapment, but if they continue then you will certainly need to have this investigated further. There are lots of causes, but you mention that you had some sharp pains in your lower left abdomen and this could represent lightening pains, a phenomenon seen in neurological conditions such as multiple sclerosis. When looking at overall causes for pins and needles in legs and arms these can be divided in to central nervous system conditions such as strokes, inflammatory brain conditions etc, drugs and systemic inflammatory disorders such as SLE and connective tissue disorders. I would suggest that you seek medical advice if they don’t settle in the next 24 hours or if your symptoms are worsening.




My name is Dr Peter Thatcher MBBS, MRCPI and I am a consultant physician and gastroenterologist in the UK. I have an interest in internet based medicine and administer this site in my spare time. I hope you find this site useful and informative. If you have any suggestions, please Contact Me or if you would like to comment on my site, please do so by Clicking Here. If you like the site and would like to make a donation to support what I am doing please do so by Clicking Here. Thank you for visiting and please drop by again!