Teenager.  Sensation of pins and needles on arms, hands and legs.  Fasting blood test clear.  History of poor posture,  smelling dirty nappies and burning them.  Advice
Patient: Dear Doctor, My fourteen year old daughter has for the past three weeks reported the sensation of pins and needles in both her arms, hands and legs. My husband took her to our GP as we thought she may have a trapped nerve. We've in the past paid for chiropractic treatment to help with her poor posture. The GP requested a check of her bloods with a fasting blood test and I'm releived to report that these are clear.  My daughter has since reported periodically smelling dirty nappies nad burning, often asking friends and family if they can smell this. The GP has asked that we keep a diary for two weeks. We haven't made her aware of the these smalls so I will do that shortly. Any advice would be very much appreciated. Kind regards Claire Cooper Doctor: HelloThe symptoms like pin needle sensation in hands and legs can occur due to a number of conditions. These symptoms may be seen in low Vitamin B12 levels or in low thyroid hormone levels. Please get these investigations done to rule out these conditions.If everything come normal then we can think of some neuritis or nerve entrapment but as she is also complaining of abnormal smells so the possibility of these conditions are less.Such symptoms may occur due to some anxiety disorder but have a close watch on her symptoms because if she show symptoms of suspiciousness and problem of abnormal smells persist then consult a psychiatrist for evaluation of hallucination or any psychotic disorder if any. Thanks