The neurologist is a specialist who diagnoses and treats diseases of the brain and spinal cord (central nervous system), peripheral nerves, muscles and neuromuscular transmission (eg myasthenia).
Neurological disorders include various types of headache, epilepsy, stroke, multiple sclerosis, movement disorders such as Parkinson’s disease, tremor, muscular dystrophies, etc., dementia, damage to individual nerves (eg, carpal tunnel syndrome), polyneuropathy.
What are the main symptoms requiring a neurologist’s examination?
1. Headache – one of the symptoms that almost every person has experienced. Signs of a more severe headache requiring a consultation with a neurologist are vomiting, aggravated or prolonged headache, sudden onset or exacerbated headache; headache that occurs in the early morning, the presence of visual disturbances and seizures.
2. Neuropathic pain – pain resulting from damage to the sensory structure in the central and peripheral nervous system. It requires diagnostic specification and treatment by a neurologist, since it is not been affected by the usual pain medication.
3. Dizziness – There is a feeling of instability with dizziness. At vertigo, the sensation is about the rotational movement of one’s body or of surrounding objects.
4. Tingling, or changing sensation – Tingling is similar to the sensation of sitting on an arm or leg that disrupts blood supply. A change in sensitivity may be manifested as decreased or increased sensitivity in some part of the body.
5. Muscle weakness – refers to decreased muscle strength in part of the body, arm, leg or individual muscles.
6. Motor problems – difficulty in gait, clumsiness, stiffness of movement, involuntary muscle contractions or involuntary movements, trembling. Shivering can be a side effect of taking some medication or it can be a result of anxiety.
7. Seizures – Seizures can be almost imperceptible or dramatically ongoing. They can range from staring to unconscious, convulsions, disturbed breathing, and confusion.
8. Visual impairment – sudden loss of vision or loss of part of the field of vision requires first consultation with an eye doctor and at his discretion with a neurologist.
9. Memory disorders and confusion
10. Sleep disorders
