How can imbalance in walking be cured?

Question

Hello doctor,

My 55-year-old father has been experiencing balance problems and difficulty walking for the past two months. He sometimes requires support while walking and struggles on uneven surfaces.

Extensive testing, including MRI, neurological evaluations, ear examinations, blood tests, Vitamin B12 and D levels, and blood sugar testing, has been normal. His symptoms began while taking blood pressure medication, and several medication changes have been made since then.

Some doctors suspected a minor stroke due to mild right-sided weakness, but no definitive diagnosis has been made. Certain medications appeared to worsen his symptoms, causing increased nervousness and difficulty walking.

Currently, he still has mild gait imbalance, requires supervision, and reports side effects such as excessive body heat, difficulty speaking, and discomfort while eating. We have also noticed that lemon and tamarind seem to aggravate his symptoms.

Could you please advise on the possible cause, whether the medications could be contributing, and what further evaluation or treatment would be appropriate?

Please help.

Thank you for your guidance.

Answer 1

Hi,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

It appears that the patient is having neurological problems at multiple levels.

The causes for imbalance while walking:

The problem in the cerebellum (part of the brain), is unlikely in this case as the MRI of the brain was normal (attachment removed to protect patient identity).
Weakness in one part of the body might have happened due to stroke, even then MRI brain should have shown that.
Weakness in both lower limbs due to problems in the spinal cord. This is more likely as loss of control over urine and motion can also be seen in spinal cord problems and the test mentioned by you has not evaluated spinal cord problems.

My advice is to get one MRI whole spine done and upload the report.

BP tablets will not cause any of these symptoms, so I advise continuing the BP tablets so that BP is maintained at less than 140/80.
Vertin and Vertizac can be stopped.
Stop Deplat-A, Rozucor instead start tablet Ecosprin -AV.
Because of taking previous all those tablets he might be having acidity problems which get exacerbated by any citrus fruits like lemon, so, I advise him to take antacids like Syrup Mucaine gel 10 ml three times a day before food.

Also, tell me what is the level of power and how his control over urine and motion reverted back with the details and report of the MRI whole spine.

I hope this addresses your concerns.

Please feel free to follow up if you need any additional clarification.

Thank you.