Numb Pinkie Finger

I don’t remember exactly when it started, but it was at least a year ago when my right pinkie finger went numb. Not the whole finger, either: just a section in the middle of it. I can’t think of any specific injury that may have caused it, it’s apparently just a random occurrence. It’s oddly painful, too. You would think if the nerve went dead, I wouldn’t be able to feel anything; but that is not the case. I can feel things – just muted and painfully.

“You really should get that looked at.” He kept saying each time he caught me wringing my hands and complaining of the odd feeling.

I totally meant to, but I was afraid that it was my neck again and I did not want another surgery. So I put it off “Just until I get back from my vacation.” Then COVID hit and everything went to hell in a handbasket, which gave me yet more excuses to not go in to have it looked at.

Finally, however, I could not put it off any longer. In October, when I had my mammogram done, the doctor also had them do a CT scan on my neck to see what was going on. Insurance balked at paying for that, however, so it was yet another three months before I was able to follow up on those results with Dr. Kralick, my Neurosurgeon.

Now really – how many people can say they have a Neurosurgeon? That’s pretty cool – except that it isn’t. 

Anyway, he reviewed the pictures taken from the CT scan and found that my neck was just fine. It shows just normal wear & tear, with nothing to indicate there is any reason to go under the knife again.

However, my pinkie is still numb – so he recommended that I have an EMG done to see how my muscles and nerves are functioning. 

As luck would have it Dr. Kussro works right there at the Anchorage Neurosurgical office, so they scheduled me for another appointment just a week later.

That was an interesting experience, to say the least. Dr. Kussro was very talkative, explaining the procedure and what he was doing as he did it. I learned all about the nerves, muscles, and how they interact with each other.

The first part of the test involved sending electric shocks at particular spots along my hand, arm, and neck to see how well the nerves transmitted the impulses. They were very mild shocks but still not very pleasant. I had to use my breathing techniques several times to keep myself from getting upset.

The second part of the test was a bit more invasive, involving needles stuck into the muscles at various places. This showed him how the muscles respond to the mild shocks he gave. The needles involved were very tiny but long; I barely felt most of them – but I have to say the one he stuck into the ball of my thumb really hurt. He had to apply a bit of pressure afterwards to stop the bleeding on that one!

The result of all these fun and games was inconclusive. We do know that I do not have any never damage. That’s the good news. The bad news is that we still don’t know why my pinkie is numb.

More tests will be forthcoming, I think…