Hi All. I am a US citizen living in India, and a longstanding CH patient. I began presenting symptoms that correspond to a layman's diagnosis of Multiple Sclerosis in the latter part of 2017. Over the years I have encountered conjecture online about possible connections between CH and MS. In February I mentioned to my neurologist the finger numbness I was experiencing, and he said don't worry, this will probably reconcile on its own, but monitor it for any significant changes.  Within three weeks, paralysis seeped deeper into my left hand, and then the right foot and leg began showing similar symptoms.

I was clinically diagnosed with Leprosy, aka Hansen's Disease, and doctors started me on the full regimen of Leprosy medications. After a few weeks of intuitively sensing a misdiagnosis due to the progression of symptoms, a colleague directed me to a well-known neurologist here in India. To make a long story short, I ended up in the hospital for 8 days while enjoying numerous tests of varying sorts. Eventually, the proper diagnosis was returned: CIDP, and in particular a subtype known as Lewis-Sumner Syndrome. This is an auto-immune condition, one that is demyelinating like MS.

I am not a doctor and I am not declaring any connections between CH and demyelinating conditions, but two of my doctors confirmed that there are at least anecdotal connections between CH and demyelinating disease.

If you experience numbness or tingling that persists for a week or so, get it checked. I waited too long, and now have nerve damage, some of which will probably be permanent. Fortunately, I have good doctors here in Bangalore who are providing the best of care.

CH is frequently misdiagnosed, as is CIDP; doctors are often simply not sufficiently informed of either condition, and this can make proper diagnosis a maze for patients. While there might not be a connection between demyelinating conditions and CH, my advice is to assume that there very well could be, and to not take prolonged tingling and numbness as a trivial, passing symptom.