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What can paralyze one arm?

Travis

Misanthrope of the Mountains
Travis
Joined
Mar 31, 2007
Messages
24,133
For some months now I've noticed that one cashier at the Safeway always uses his left arm to do his job. At first I just thought this was some quirk of his. But as time as gone on I'm beginning to think that maybe something else is going on. The other day I noticed his right arm was suffering atrophy (also it was little bit red).

His right hand is always clenched in loose fist. He can move the right arm a little bit he seems unable to unclench the fist.

Does anyone know of what might cause that?
 
Complications from a cerebrovascular accident would be my guess. Severed nerve bundle at the subclavian would do it too.

Does he have any facial droop?

EDIT: There's also some nervous system diseases that might do it...degradation of the myelin sheaths around the neurons, but those tend to be more systemic than localized.
 
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Doesn't have to be nerves, just tissue damage which is where my bet is.
 
If his fist is perma-clenched, it's got to be nerve issues of some sort. Could be either CNS or PNS. Only his physician would know for sure.
 
I'm not saying it's the case but there's also psychogenic paralysis.
 
I said I'm not saying it's the case (for this person) but it's an answer to the thread title.
 
Could be any number of things ... obviously ... but I would also have more questions: the thread title says "paralyzed" but then you describe he can actually do some things with it .... to what degree is it atrophied, how much does he favor it, is it consistently and noticeably red or could that be attributed to something else?, how old is he, does he merely favor it or avoid using it completely in a guarded fashion, does he have facial droop or speech issues, does the entire arm move about freely or does he hold it close to himself, is his "fist clenching" white knuckle type gripping or more of a "ball squeezing" type of motion, are there surgical signs/scars on his arm, wrist, hand, etc ....

Honestly ? Just based on what I read here in this thread, I might suspect it's more simple: carpal tunnel worse in one hand over another. My two cents. You should ask him and report back :)
 
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Pulvinar said:
A consideration is that he might not wish to have people speculating.
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Not a lot that can be done about speculation. Part of human nature is to wonder. In my experience, people are often willing to answer questions too, if they're asked politely.
 
Andrew Wiggin said:
Not a lot that can be done about speculation. Part of human nature is to wonder. In my experience, people are often willing to answer questions too, if they're asked politely.
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That may be. It's also possible that they answer because not answering is even more embarrassing. Also human nature, of course.
 
Trent Wray said:
Could be any number of things ... obviously ... but I would also have more questions: the thread title says "paralyzed" but then you describe he can actually do some things with it .... to what degree is it atrophied,
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Only a little bit. I only noticed this last time.

how much does he favor it,
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The only thing I've seen him do with it for months now is plop the fist hand on the counter where it then doesn't move. Otherwise he just lets it lay at his side out of the way.

is it consistently and noticeably red or could that be attributed to something else?
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This last time was the only time it ever looked red.

how old is he,
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40ish

does he merely favor it or avoid using it completely in a guarded fashion
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As described above he avoids using it and when he does plop on the counter it just sort of lays there.

does he have facial droop or speech issues
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No.

does the entire arm move about freely or does he hold it close to himself,
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He holds it close to himself.

is his "fist clenching" white knuckle type gripping or more of a "ball squeezing" type of motion,
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Not a white knuckle clenching. But not like gripping a ball either. Just all the fingers and thumbs retracted and being held there in a loose fashion.


are there surgical signs/scars on his arm, wrist, hand, etc ....
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No.

Honestly ? Just based on what I read here in this thread, I might suspect it's more simple: carpal tunnel worse in one hand over another. My two cents. You should ask him and report back :)
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Yeah, I'm not asking him. This guy has a frosty demeanor that would send Pollyanna running. If you ask him how he's doing he'll draw out "p-e-a-c-h-y" in such a cold way that you feel like you somehow insulted him.
 
Could he be Bob Dole in disguise?



In April 1945, while engaged in combat near Castel d'Aiano in the Apennine mountains southwest of Bologna, Italy, Dole was hit by German machine gun fire in his upper right back and his right arm was also badly injured.

...

His right arm was paralyzed; Dole often carried a pen in his right hand to signal that he could not shake hands with that arm.
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Travis said:
Only a little bit. I only noticed this last time.

The only thing I've seen him do with it for months now is plop the fist hand on the counter where it then doesn't move. Otherwise he just lets it lay at his side out of the way.

This last time was the only time it ever looked red.

40ish

As described above he avoids using it and when he does plop on the counter it just sort of lays there.

No.

He holds it close to himself.

Not a white knuckle clenching. But not like gripping a ball either. Just all the fingers and thumbs retracted and being held there in a loose fashion.


No.

Yeah, I'm not asking him. This guy has a frosty demeanor that would send Pollyanna running. If you ask him how he's doing he'll draw out "p-e-a-c-h-y" in such a cold way that you feel like you somehow insulted him.
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Find a young girl with a balloon and a teddy bear and give her 10$ to ask him.

Hmm ... this is going to sound like a cop out answer, but my guess would be he's had some sort of trauma to that arm. Doesn't sound "diseased" or afflicted imo. The result of some type of previous injury would be my guess. Or maybe he's doing a Bill Cosby impersonation.
 
Stroke is what I first thought of. My sister-in-law has a nerve condition that causes intense pain. Her right arm isn't paralyzed, but it is stiff and what movement it is capable of is very painful for her.
 
CynicalSkeptic said:
Polio
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That was my first thought. I used to work with a guy who had had polio and it partially paralyzed one arm. He could use the hand and extend the arm, but he couldn't fold the arm in; he either had to use his other hand to move the arm into whatever postion he wanted it in, or swing it, at which he was rather good. With a twitch of his body, he'd send the arm up to his shirt pocket where he kept his cigarettes, latch on with a finger, pull up a cig, and stick it in his mouth.

You don't think about polio in this day and age but it's still out there, particularly if he grew up in another country - he might not have gotten a vaccine.

Of course, cerebral palsy sometimes affects only one limb or one set of limbs, too...
 
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I have a bulged disk in my neck due to an accident. For a time it was causing me pain and my arm was atrophying a bit. I decided against surgery and so far it appears to be resolving itself on its own.

Ranb
 
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