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Hi guys,

Not sure what is going on, no pain, no shortness of breath, no unusual tiredness... (just occasional mental confusion but that is normal for me).

My nails turn blue. Not only when out and about in the cold, but at work, home, standing, sitting, laying down...dark navy to the point where people notice it and comment (no it is not my clear nail polish...I checked)...I have an oxygen saturation thingy that measures it and I drop from 99% to 94% or less sometimes...no rhyme or reason.

My hands & feet don't go numb, get painful or anything else unless I am out in the cold (which is not the case for the moment) but swell a bit...they do not go red either.

What is it? The only meds that I take are for my epilepsy, naproxen and the occasion non-narcotic pain med...multi-vitamins and b-complex.

Ideas? My cardiac work-up was 2yrs ago and all was well.

The only other 'unusual' thing is that my thyroid is really swollen again (visibly so...looks like a baseball) but this seems to be cyclic and the ultrasound showed nothing dangerous last year when checked.

??

Sharon

 

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My first thought was Raynaud's too. It is quite common. But if you have a goiter, you really need to follow up on that, even though it was benign last time. Things can change over time. Definitely not normal. You don't use salt that is not iodized, do you?

http://www.thyroid.org/goiter/

 

Your meds should not affect your peripheral circulation. As you get older, various cardiopulmonary issues become more likely. If you are not dehydrated, you should have another look at your heart/lung status.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyanosis

 

Jan

Jan,

I've been using Pink Tebetan moutain salt (supposedly pure and better for you! Piffle, but it tastes nice)...I never thought about the iodization  really but I doubt that it is...good point. I have been using it for about 1yr+ , about the time that this lump started to appear (last winter)...it went away in the summer (when I am home in the U.S. with iodized salt?) and now it is back....hmmm

I can't think of any place else that I would get iodine...don't eat seafood...

Could it be that simple? Just change salt?

Sharon

The thyroid really could be as simple as insufficient iodine in your diet. That's why iodized salt was invented. That you don't eat seafood is a huge clue. It's hard to know if the places you eat in the US use iodized salt, but if they're in the midwest there's a good chance that they do.

 

And this doesn't say anything about blue fingertips.

Last edited by Scott F

My first thought is Raynaud's as well, but it's good to go for a full work up in any case. You mentioned having cardiac testing, but that was 2 years ago and a lot can change in that period of time. It would be a good idea to repeat that. Other things to rule out - some of which have already been mentioned -- include thyroid issues, anemia, peripheral vascular disease (my uncle had this and unfortunately ignored it for too long, until it eventually led to amputation of his foot), or diabetes. Also, if you notice you have been bruising easily as well, you would need to rule out a blood disorder or (though I hate I mention it), leukemia.

 

Then again, it could definitely be a simple as not eating iodized salt. There are actually relatively few good dietary sources of iodine, so that is something to consider. If you don't eat seafood, then eggs and yogurt are fair sources.

 

Hope you get it sorted out!

Last edited by Spooky
Lack of iodine also ties in with the thyroid issue. I was recently on a low iodine diet as pert of my thyroid cancer treatment and I was not allowed eggs or dairy or seafood. Anything that comes from the sea has iodine in it and that would include careegenan and sea salt and seaweed. Eating even moderate amounts of dairy and eggs and seafood should do the job. Iodine deficiency is quite rare and is most frequently observed in those eating native foods diets in deep inland areas like the US Midwest and Canadian interior.

Nope, no eggs either (can't stand the taste or texture!)...but I do eat yoghurt...a little bit of hard cheese and fish.

I have lymphoma but have not had any 'problems' since diagnosised and both chains of inguinal lymph glands removed .

Hubby is on finger tip watch...I can be in the middle of something and they just change colour...purple to blue (really weird)...when I check the O2 saturation I am down to 93 or 94%...

So I guess I need to start making appts all over the place.

Just when I thought that things were going better there is always something new that pops up.

Sharon

I didn't really notice Scott,

From the pictures taken I would say around 3 weeks for it to completely dissapear.

I checked out the Raynaud's syndrom site...it doesn't look like what I have going on...my hands don't go red or white...my skin is not rough and scaled or any of the other signs. The only similarity is that I cannot stand cold...it turns my hands & feet numb  quickly, then when they thaw out they burn and tingle...but not under normal circumstances...it needs to be nearly sub-zero. (I now where Uggs when it is cold and they help a lot)

My nails just go purple to navy in normal temperatures...it can last minutes or hours...indoors or out...then they go back to the normal light pink.

I was diagnosed with thorathic outlet syndrom as a teen (during my scoliosis exams...all part of the Ehler's-Danlos stuff)...but that requires me to hyper extend my arms/shoulders backwards to have any effect...

This is very frustating..Will try to get in to see my cardiologist before X-mas but it may be difficult. 

Sharon

 

 

Update...

Since I stopped the pink salt and went back to the good-old fashioned iodized salt my thyroid has shrunk back down to normal (that will teach me to use all these new-fangled foods)...the nails are pink again, I am less cold in the extremities and my hair is falling out a lot less (hubby noticed the amount that he vacumes up from the floor is way down)...Was by the sea for a few days so I walked barefoot up to my knees in the freezing seawater...did some nice yoga breathing there too...

Energy level is up (might just be due to the vacation) and I am feeling less fuzzy....

Could it have been that simple?

Thanks for all of the input...will pick up my bloodwork on Friday to confirm the results.

Sharon

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