HealthCareMagic is now Ask A Doctor - 24x7 | https://www.askadoctor24x7.com

What Causes Feeling Cold,fainting And Shivering?

Posted on Tue, 13 May 2014

Question: my son is has been passing out, getting very cold, has migraines right before passes out, and starts shaking once he is on the ground (been determined that they are not seizures) he has been to see several doctors and no one can find any issues. has had exams for his heart, etc...everything seems fine. migraines are getting worse, almost daily. he is 21 years old and in the marine corps. he was very healthy up until about a year ago when this all began.

Answered by Dr. Dr. Prasad J (6 hours later)

Brief Answer: Episodic spontaneous hypothermia.... Detailed Answer: Hi, I would have to say, your son has unusual presentation of symptoms and worthy of elaborate evaluation. Since he reports of feeling cold, passing out and shivering, I would relate the problems to hypothermia. I have heard about an infrequent disorder called episodic periodic hypothermia which to an extent matches your description. Here the cause is mostly unknown, but few cases are linked to thyroid, insulin and serotonin disturbances. Frankly, I haven't seen any patient with this condition. Hence I am not very well aware about the effects of various medicines on this condition. But calcium channel blockers such as flunarizine, carbamazepine, betablockers and other migraine prophylactic drugs are listed to be useful. I suggest you to bring his doctors attention to his complaints of hypothermia and try treating him with the aforementioned tests. You may also seek help of endocrinologist to assess his body hormones. Hope this suffices. Let me know if you need clarifications. Regards

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Dr. Prasad J (12 hours later)

he has seen several doctors on base where he is stationed. he claims that the headaches are becoming almost daily and he can't sleep (not sure if that is due to stress?) he has not had an mri yet, but is to get one within the next month. however he has had several tests for his heart (echocardiogram), and all are coming back normal. he doesn't have numbing or tingling. just "cold and shivering" once he regains conscious from fainting. could all this be from migraines? or is there a possibility of a tumor? just not sure which direction he should go in. since he is on base, he is seeing a different doctor each time. it seems to be that its whoever can see him at the time, so its never the same. just trying to come up with something that could possibly suggest that they could maybe test for. and whenever he does have a test, it could take a month or so to get it. seems like already alot of time has gone by and there aren't any answers yet. any suggestions would be very appreciated.

Answered by Dr. Dr. Prasad J (14 hours later)

Brief Answer: MRI is an important test... Detailed Answer: Hi, His symptoms does not obviously indicate a brain tumour, but the MRI scan is going to be an important test. If he hasn't met a neurologist yet, I'd recommend it. Seizures can present atypically and you require an expert neurologist if not an EEG to rule out a seizure. I understand your son is in trouble. I would ask you to keep hope. He can use pain killers as and when the ache is severe. After his MRI, let him speak about migraine prophylaxis drugs - those I mentioned earlier. You can write back to me for assistance. Regards

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Dr. Prasad J (5 hours later)

Thank you Dr XXXXXXX for all your advice and your kind words. You have been very helpful.

Answered by Dr. Dr. Prasad J (4 minutes later)

Brief Answer: You are welcome... Detailed Answer: I am glad I was helpful. If you have no more questions to me, I request to you close this discussion. Regards

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar