Hypoesthesia

Hypoesthesia or numbness is a common side effect of various medical conditions that manifests as a reduced sense of touch or sensation, or a partial loss of sensitivity to sensory stimuli. In everyday speech this is generally referred to as numbness.^[1]

Hypoesthesia primarily results from damage to nerves, and from blockages in blood vessels, resulting in ischemic damage to tissues supplied by the blocked blood vessels. This damage is detectable through the use of various imaging studies. Damage in this way is caused by a variety of different illnesses and diseases. A few examples of the most common illnesses and diseases that can cause hypoesthesia as a side effect are as follows:

• Decompression sickness
• Trigeminal schwannoma
• Rhombencephalitis
• Intradural extramedullary tuberculoma of the spinal cord
• Cutaneous sensory disorder
• Beriberi