Symptom: Finger paresthesia

Introduction: Finger paresthesia

Abnormal nerve sensations such as pins-and-needles, tingling, burning, prickling or similar feelings are all known as "paresthesias". Some cases are severe enough to be considered painful. Paresthesias usually result from nerve damage due to pressure, entrapment, or nerve diseases. Continued nerve damage can lead to finger numbness and eventually permanent loss of feeling. Any abnormal sensation needs medical investigation.

Distinction as to which fingers are tingling is important to diagnosis. The main fingers are more likely to be affected by conditions such as carpal tunnel syndrome. The 4th and 5th fingers are affected by the ulnar nerve, which can be interrupted by pressure at the elbow or the chest area (e.g. thoracid outlet syndrome).

Parethesias in the hands and fingers can also be caused by broader diseases such as peripheral neuropathy (more common in the feet but hands can be affected) and various others. Correct diagnosis of the causes of finger paresthesias is important and treatment can often reverse the damage.

» Review Causes of Finger paresthesia: full list

Causes of Finger paresthesia:

The following medical conditions are some of the possible causes of Finger paresthesia. There are likely to be other possible causes, so ask your doctor about your symptoms.

• Carpal tunnel syndrome
• Some possible causes of tingling/numbness of the small finger (pinky) and/or the ring finger involve effects to the ulnar nerve:
  • Ulnar nerve disorder
  • Elbow condition - the ulnar nerve runs through the elbow and injury or pressure on the elbow may affect the ulnar nerve.
  • Thoracid outlet syndrome
• Tingling fingers - see causes of tingling fingers
• Finger numbness - see causes of numb fingers
• Hand neuropathy
• Peripheral neuropathy
• Panic attack - can get tingling or numbness in panic attacks, but usually with many other symptoms.

See full list of 22 causes of Finger paresthesia

» Review Causes of Finger paresthesia: full list

Causes of Types of Finger paresthesia:

Review the causes of these more specific types of Finger paresthesia:

• Thumb paresthesia/ tingling (10 causes)

More types of Finger paresthesia

Finger paresthesia: Multiple Symptom Checker

Listed below are some combinations of symptoms associated with Finger paresthesia, as listed in our database. Visit the Multiple Symptoms Checker, to add and remove symptoms and research your condition.

Multiple Symptom Checker - Other Symptoms

• Finger paresthesia: Multiple Symptom Checker

Multiple Symptom Checker Combinations

• Finger paresthesia and Nerve symptoms (17 causes)
• Finger paresthesia and Pain (17 causes)
• Finger paresthesia and Paresthesias (17 causes)
• Finger paresthesia and Sensations (17 causes)
• Finger paresthesia and Tingling fingers (16 causes)
• Finger paresthesia and Arm paresthesia (15 causes)
• Finger paresthesia and Arm symptoms (15 causes)
• Finger paresthesia and Finger symptoms (15 causes)
• Finger paresthesia and Hand paresthesia (15 causes)
• Finger paresthesia and Hand symptoms (15 causes)
• Finger paresthesia and Numbness (12 causes)
• Finger paresthesia and Leg symptoms (11 causes)
• Finger paresthesia and Finger numbness (11 causes)
• Finger paresthesia and Foot symptoms (9 causes)
• Finger paresthesia and Weakness (9 causes)
• Finger paresthesia and Arm numbness (9 causes)
• Finger paresthesia and Hand numbness (9 causes)
• Finger paresthesia and Limb symptoms (8 causes)
• Finger paresthesia and Face symptoms (7 causes)
• Finger paresthesia and Foot paresthesia (7 causes)

See full list of 471 Multiple Symptom Checker combinations related to Finger paresthesia

Home Diagnostic Testing and Finger paresthesia

Home medical tests possibly related to Finger paresthesia:

• Diabetes: Related Home Testing:
  • Home Diabetes Tests
  • Home Blood Glucose Tests
  • Home Urine Glucose Tests
  • Home Urine Ketone Tests
  • Home Diabetes HbA1c Tests
  • Home Microalbumin Tests (Kidney)
  • Home Urine Protein Tests (Kidney)
  • Home Kidney Tests
  • Home Eye Tests

Causes of General Symptom Types

Research the causes of these more general types of symptom:

• Finger symptoms (770 causes)
• Paresthesias (210 causes)
• Hand paresthesia (49 causes)
• Arm paresthesia (58 causes)
• Tingling (358 causes)
• Tingling fingers (34 causes)
• Sensations (3186 causes)
• Nerve symptoms (3495 causes)
• Hand symptoms (861 causes)
• Arm symptoms (1076 causes)
• Pain (3014 causes)
• Common symptoms (4555 causes)
• Limb symptoms (1032 causes)

Causes of Similar Symptoms to Finger paresthesia

Research the causes of these symptoms that are similar to, or related to, the symptom Finger paresthesia:

• Tingling fingers (34 causes)
• Numb fingers (29 causes)

Diagnostic Guides for Finger paresthesia

Medical Books Excerpts Read excerpts from published book sections related to Finger paresthesia from the following published medical books for more detailed information about Finger paresthesia. Free access (no registration): read all online diagnostic book sections about Finger paresthesia

Copyright notice for book excerpts: Copyright © 2008 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. All rights reserved.

Misdiagnosis and Finger paresthesia

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Read more about Misdiagnosis and Finger paresthesia

Diagnostic tests for Finger paresthesia:

Various tests are used in the diagnosis of Finger paresthesia. Some of these are listed below :

• General appearance - abnormal posture, muscle wasting, abnormal arm movements.
• Physical examination
  • May be necessary to examine a variety of joints including the cervical spine, shoulder, elbow , wrists and the various joints of the hand
  • Test muscle tone, power, reflexes and co-ordination of upper limbs
  • Test sensation of upper limbs ( including pain , touch , temperature and vibration sensation)

See full list of 30 diagnostic tests for Finger paresthesia

Diagnosis Checklist: Questions your doctor may ask (and why!)

During a consultation, your doctor will use various techniques in their assessment of Finger paresthesia. Your doctor may ask several questions when assessing your condition. It is important to remember that your consultation is a two-way process and any extra information you can share with your doctor about your symptoms may help them with their diagnosis. Some of the questions your doctor may ask are listed below:

• How long have you noticed paresthesia in your finger? - to establish if acute or chronic.
• Which finger or fingers are affected?
• Are there other parts of the upper extremity that are affected by paresthesia? - e.g. hand, forearm, elbow, shoulder - can help determine which nerves are affected.
• Are both upper extremities affected and is it symmetrical?- helps determine which nerves are affected e.g. peripheral neuropathy is symmetrical compared with individual nerve or nerve root disease which should be suspected if sensory loss is asymmetrical or confined to one limb
• Is there a time of day when finger paresthesia is worse? - can help determine the cause of arm numbness e.g. carpal tunnel syndrome is usually worse at night.

See Diagnosis Checklist for Finger paresthesia (24 listings)

Diagnosis Checklist: Associated symptoms your doctor may ask about (and why!)

Sometimes, other symptoms may be present and may help your doctor analyse your condition. The symptoms your doctor may ask about (in association with Finger paresthesia) may include:

• Arm pain? - if also pain in the involved extremity this usually suggests herniated cervical disc , spinal cord tumor or cervical spondylosis. Other conditions to consider are brachial plexus neuropathy, thoracic outlet syndrome, cervical rib, Pancoast's tumor, Raynaud's disease, sympathetic dystrophy or various entrapment syndromes such as carpal tunnel syndrome and ulnar nerve entrapment at the elbow.
• Arm weakness?
• Neck pain? - may indicate cervical spondylosis, herniated cervical disc, spinal cord tumor.
• Are there any other areas of the body which have paresthesia? - e.g. paresthesia of the face would suggest a diagnosis of cerebrovascular disease, a mass in the brain, migraine or multiple sclerosis.
• Symptoms of multiple sclerosis? - e.g. impaired vision, limb weakness, limb numbness or tingling, tremor of hands, dizziness.

See Diagnosis Checklist for Finger paresthesia (24 listings)

Stories from Users for Finger paresthesia

Real-life user stories relating to Finger paresthesia:

• tingling in right pinky finger
• middle finger tip tingling...not raynauds related
• tingling in fingers
• Finger Paresthesias
• Tingling fingers
• tingling fingers
• Numb/tingling pinkie finger
• tingling in fingers
• Tingling in my finger
• finger swelling and paresthesia
• Burning, tingling, stiff fingers..

Videos for Finger paresthesia

Patient Surveys for Finger paresthesia

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Organs affected by Finger paresthesia:

The list of organs typically affected by Finger paresthesia may include, but is not limited to:

• Finger
• Finger nerve
• Skin

Detailed list of causes of Finger paresthesia

The list below shows some of the causes of Finger paresthesia mentioned in various sources:

• Basilar artery migraine - finger paresthesia
• Broken finger - tingling finger
• Carpal tunnel syndrome - finger paresthesias
• Diabetic neuropathy - Finger paresthesias
• Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy - Finger paresthesias

See full list of 22 causes of Finger paresthesia

How Common are these Causes of Finger paresthesia?

This information refers to the general prevalence and incidence of these diseases, not to how likely they are to be the actual cause of Finger paresthesia. Of the 22 causes of Finger paresthesia that we have listed, we have the following prevalence/incidence information:

• 1 causes are "very common" diseases
• 0 causes are "common" diseases
• 1 causes are "uncommon" diseases
• 0 causes are "rare" diseases
• 0 causes are "very rare" diseases
• 21 causes have no prevalence information.

See the analysis of the prevalence of 22 causes of Finger paresthesia

Conditions listing symptoms: Finger paresthesia:

The following list of conditions have 'Finger paresthesia' or similar listed as a symptom in our database. This computer-generated list may be inaccurate or incomplete. Always seek prompt professional medical advice about the cause of any symptom.

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Causes of Finger paresthesia Based on Risk Factors

This information shows analysis of the list of causes of Finger paresthesia based on whether certain risk factors apply to the patient: