Suggest treatment for sharp pain in the left shin

Posted on Thu, 19 Apr 2018

Question: For about 3-4 weeks I get a sharp pain in my left shin (beside the bone), mostly when I stand up after sitting. Sometimes the pain shoots up the left side of my left thigh, and sometimes in my calf. I have difficulty putting my weight on my leg when I initially get up from sitting, then it usually subsides somewhat and I can walk without pain. I haven't done any exercises recently that might indicate a strain.

Answered by Dr. Mahaveer Patil (32 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
Neuralgia vs tendinitis

Detailed Answer:
Hi,

Thank you for posting the question.
I have gone through your medical history in detail.

Such type of pain besides the shin mostly can occur due to 2 reasons-

1. Neuralgia- Inflammation of the anterior tibial nerve in the anterior part of the leg causes such shooting pain across the shin and sometimes radiates to the thigh region.

2.Tendinitis- An unknown stress over the leg tendon causes pain while standing from sitting position.

I hope you do not have a fever or tingling sensation in the affected area.
Do you have back pain?

I would suggest you to take anti inflammatory tablets like tramadol,paracetamol along with methylcobalamin and pregabalin tablets. These will reduce the inflammation of the nerves and tendons.

Applying local analgesic gel and linseed oil locally over the painful areas twice a day followed by hot fomentation will reduce the pain to considerable extent.

A compression bandage should be worn from ankle till the knee while ambulating and walking.Once you are at rest,it can be removed.

If the pain does not subside by these measures,you should consult your doctor.

AVOID- sitting cross legged and squatting.

I hope the answer was useful to you.

You can get back to me anytime if have any doubts.

Thank you.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Nagamani Ng