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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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What Causes Itching And Numbness In Ears?

My ear on the left side is CONSTANTLY itchy, and at times goes numb and feels like it s asleep . The Left left side of my face is itchy and feels numb quite often...what worries me is that now my left eye itches and is irritated and is constantly watering. It feels like allergies....but only on the left side. I don t know wether it s related or not, but I have constant cold sores, including recently developing herpes whitlow.
Mon, 25 May 2015
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General Surgeon 's  Response
Hi.
Noted your history of left ear itchiness, numbness and at times going into sleep, Same thing occurs on the left side of the face, and now left eye itchiness and watering. You have history of constant cold sores and herpes.

Clinically the history goes into favor of Trigeminal neuralgia.
If I were your treating Doctor, I would do a thorough ENT endoscopy to rule out any focus of infection and if everything is normal I would have started you on Gabapentin and such medicines and see the response.

Further dose modulations and addition of other medications would help me to confirm the diagnosis as well as give you the correct dose of medicines.
If required an MRI for trigeminal nerve can show loops of pulsatile artery for which a procedure helps a lot.

Regular review is very important to see for the progress of the problems.

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What Causes Itching And Numbness In Ears?

Hi. Noted your history of left ear itchiness, numbness and at times going into sleep, Same thing occurs on the left side of the face, and now left eye itchiness and watering. You have history of constant cold sores and herpes. Clinically the history goes into favor of Trigeminal neuralgia. If I were your treating Doctor, I would do a thorough ENT endoscopy to rule out any focus of infection and if everything is normal I would have started you on Gabapentin and such medicines and see the response. Further dose modulations and addition of other medications would help me to confirm the diagnosis as well as give you the correct dose of medicines. If required an MRI for trigeminal nerve can show loops of pulsatile artery for which a procedure helps a lot. Regular review is very important to see for the progress of the problems.