Question
Hi Robert, thanks for taking the time to answer my question.

I'm not sure if this is a Chiropractic type of question. About 6 months ago (a vague estimate) I experienced recurrent pain in a specific area of my left hand. It would occur maybe once a day without any apparent cause or correlation to activities etc. and would last for seconds or a minute at a time. This went on for a few weeks or so, maybe longer (I don't seem to keep track of things). Over the past week or so it has been happening again - same area of left hand, more frequent than last time (maybe 3-4 times a day), same intensity but sometimes it stays for longer periods like 3-5 minutes. The area of the hand is the non-palm side from the little finger and ring finger down to the top of the wrist, although it's always hard for me to pinpoint the pain to an exact spot. It feels like a sort of "radiating" cramp when it happens. I haven't yet found any way that works to alleviate it when it happens, I just wait for it to pass. Last time around it was passing very quickly. This time it doesn't seem to pass so quickly, so it's starting to impede my life slightly and I'm wondering what the cause might be and whether it is something to be concerned about. I don't have a lot of spare money right now to pay a doctor so I'm wondering how important you think it is for me to see someone or if I can manage without. I'm 23, female, health generally good, no known conditions, not taking any medications, resident in the USA.

Thanks for any pointers you can give me.
Warm regards,
Helen

Answer
Helen,
What you are describing to me is a classic sign of a problem that can be seen in the lower cervical spine on a lateral cervical spine XRay. You most likely are suffering from a bulging disc in the C7-T1 area or a pinched nerve from a misaligned or subluxated spinal bone.  I would highly recommend to you to go to an Upper Cervical Specific Doctor for an examination so that this could be proven and corrected.  This is a progressive situation so the longer you wait in hopes that it will just go away, the worse it will actually get.
Have you ever sustained a car accident injury, whiplash type injury?  This could potentially cause your trouble.
In Your Best Health,
Dr Robert Arnone
Upper Cervical Specific Doctor
"Brainstem Specialist"
Arnone Clinic
711 Old Ballas Road Suite 104
St Louis, MO 63141
(314)995-5719