Hands Gets Curl And Frozen While Sneezing, Coughing Or Laughing. Could It Be Muscle Spasm?

Posted on Mon, 25 Feb 2013

Question: Hello Dr. Christensen,
Just a quick question. For the past year, everytime I have to sneeze, cough or laugh really strong both my hands will curl into almost a claw like position and stay frozen for several seconds, and then I'm fine. Is this just a form of a muscle spasm? I'm 44.5 :) 243lbs (I know).... and otherwise pretty healthy. Thanks.
XXXXXXX

Answered by Dr. Ganesh Sanap (1 hour later)

Hi, welcome and thanks for writing in.
Yes, it is form of muscle spasm which is known as carpo-pedal spasm. It a sign of hypocalcemia.
It is not a serious condition which will affect your health. However it need to be corrected gradually.
I will suggest please consult your physician to get clinically examined . Blood calcium level test may be needed. It is also important to note that at this perimenopausal age calcium level start decreasing. You need to start calcium and VIT D supplements depending on blood level.

Hope I have answered your query.

Regards.

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