Mononeuropathies

Wrist drop, tennis elbow, carpal tunnel syndrome...

Single nerves can be affected in the body for various reasons, be the most notorious, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS). In CTS the median nerve at wrist gets injured.

Mononeuropathies

Other types of mononeuropathies include injury to the radial nerve causing “wrist drop”, injury to the ulnar nerve at the elbow “tennis elbow syndrome”, injury of the tibial nerve at the ankle causing “tarsal tunnel syndrome”, and many others. NCS/EMG is paramount in extended additional diagnostic tools to history and exam, and can also help to quantify the degree of injury.

Mononeuritis multiplex

Mononeuritis multiplex, also known as mononeuropathy multiplex or multifocal neuropathy, is a type of peripheral neuropathy. It happens when there is damage to two or more different nerve areas. Mononeuritis multiplex is actually a group of symptoms rather than its own disease. Its symptoms include numbness, tingling, abnormal sensation, lack of sensation, difficulty to control movement, or an inability to move a part of the body.

People with diabetes, Mellitus, or connective tissue diseases are more likely to get mononeuritis multiplex

Anyone can have mononeuritis multiplex, but people with diabetes, Mellitus, or connective tissue diseases are more likely to get it. Another common cause includes a lack of oxygen caused by decreased blood flow. A common cause is from vasculitis. This is inflammation around some blood vessels that can affect the vasa nervorum, or blood vessels around certain nerves. This can be seen in many disorders including polyarteritis nodosa, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, Wegener’s granulomatosis, and scleroderma, to name a few.