[thunderbear]

As I wrote about in my last post on the Health Support forum, my leg got worse. It was more painful & had started to get numb, a lil warm & a lil swollen. So I went to the ER this morning & showed the Nurse Practitioner (you dont see a doctor anymore) my leg and the blue/green spots on my calf. She squeezed it said it felt a bit warmer than my other leg and pulled around on my foot. She ordered a Duplex Doppler. Well the doppler tech said my deep veins looked good that there was no vascular abnormalities & no blood clots. I never seen the NP again and didnt see a doctor. My husband was in the room when the doppler was done & he said as far as he could tell everything in my veins was running normally. A nurse came in & told me I was having acute sciatica. I asked him if sciatica caused swelling of the limbs & he said no only swelling it causes is localized swelling in the buttock. Well, Im still worried. Its only a little swelling & a little warmth. The blue/green spots are varicose veins but they arent deep or big enough to cause life threatening clots like Dvt can. The doppler tech explained to me the different types of veins and what to look for when it came to Dvt. She was very knowladgable so I believe she knew what she was ralking about. First question should I trust what she says? I mean she has seen blood clots on those dopplers before, Im sure. I didnt get to see the radiologist. Just my discharge papers saying that the Duplex Doppler US was Normal. Secomd question, does anyone have experience with slight swelling & warmth in a leg affected by sciatica? I know pain can cause both of those in other muscles. Anyway, its me overanaylizing again. Im.just hoping some of you guys can share your experence with acute sciatica. Oh & another thing, when the tech pushed the doppler stick thing (?) behind my knee & pushed, a pain shot through there that brpught me off the table. I have problems in that knee,mabye thats causing the swelling? Help :-\

[Travelinglady]

It seems like techs and nurses, etc. are doing more of the work these days. I would think the person would know the right information and told you the right diagnosis.

I am familiar with sciatica causing bad pain, but I'm not familiar with it causing the other symptoms, but then I'm no expert, other than having some sciatic pain.

Anyone else?

[thunderbear]

Thanks Payne.....
I agree with you. Before that hospital jouned with Ky Health Inititives a couple years ago, it was an amazing hospital. They had at least 3 emergency docs with their own RNs & ARNPs. If you indicated that you were religous the liasion person would come and offer prayer. Now you get a 5-10 minute exam with ARNP. But she seemed thorough in examining my leg. Sometimes I tjink the nurses & techs are just as knowladgeable as the docs in certain fields. My tech was very sure that my doppler test was right. Her words "I can tell you definatively that you do not have Dvt". I guess its just my messed up mind telling me I could have cause a doctor didnt tell me face to face. As far as my leg is today, the swelling is gone as is the warmth. But the pain is still there. The discharge nurse said he had his sciatic pain in his calf & foot for 8 months WITH anti inflammatories =-O....I hope not. This is causing such bad hypochondriac anxiety. I suffer more from the "what ifs" than from the actual pain. Ughh goin thru it I guess.