Reynauds Syndrome

The ends of my toes have been sore for a few years but I have put it down to pressure caused by running downhill. Recently I have had a couple of blisters on my toes which have not wanted to heal and a particularly large one on the back of my left heel which wouldn't heal and got infected and stopped me running/cycling for 6 weeks. When not exercising my feet are either red hot or freezing cold and sometimes bright purple which gave me a bit of a fright.Also, one of my fingers would randomly go white and lose sensation.

Today I have seen a NHS podiatrist who tells me that I have Reynaud's Syndrome. The soreness on my toes is chilblains.
She gave me a Doppler scan which has shown that my general circulation is fine, which is good news.She has given me lots of what seems good advice, the main thrust being to try and keep the extremities at a constant temperature as it is variations in temperature that makes things worse.

I am sure others on here will have had similar symptoms or diagnosis and wondered if they had any advice re types of dressings/socks/gloves/clothing that that may alleviate the problem both indoors and out.

Mrs DTR has this in her hands (it does only seem to effect one of her hands) she always wears gloves when it’s slightly cold and also puts those disposable hand warmer jobbies inside a pair of convertible mitt/ gloves when it’s especially cold which seems to do the trick, her hands still get cold and she does sometimes hit me with the freaky cold hand of death when we’re driving back from running club :D but these have definitely helped, she doesn’t have issues with her feet but I do know that you can get foot warmers, not sure how practical these would be though

I've had Raynaud's in my hands for years. The first time it happened I thought my fingers were going to fall off! Dead man's fingers. It only happens to me after a run, especially if it's been wet and windy. Just cold and I'm fine. It always comes on about 10 minutes after I stop and lasts 30 minutes or so. It's quite uncomfortable when the blood comes back in. My wife says I've always been a 'cold person'! My hands are always cold as are my feet. She likes nothing better than me warning my feet up on her back in bed. She says I need to fatten up a bit.
The GP offered my beta blockers but I don't like to take stuff unless it's necessary. Beta blockers can make you feel a bit slowed up. Even if I wear gloves it happens so I just accept it.
It seems to be quite common up here, I think circulatory problems are rife in Scotland.

I have it in my hands and to a much lesser extent in my toes. I also commute to work by bicycle so dread the winter months. I have a huge number of gloves (much to my wife's redicule) - a pair suitable for every occasion. Stating the obvious I know but trying to stay as warm as possible for as long as possible reaps rewards. Winter cycling is often in 2 pairs of gloves, with hand warmers and then the shortest route possible. You get the idea.
Running is usually outer windproof mits with an inner glove - a merino liner.
As for the feet, I had to invest in winter cycling boots but when running in the cold I'm usually not too bad until the temperature start to approach freezing. Then I use 2 pairs of wool socks - the inner ones with individual toes. Even then I have to admit defeat on really cold days as it is just too painful to run when ground is hard.
Aftercare is usually a good warm bath and gently massage (dreading the rush of blood and the associated pain!)

I have Reynaud's but not very badly. Alpaca wool socks are excellent. I usually warm up two or three miles into the run, take gloves off, waddle along happily for a few miles and then when I get home and get into a nice warm shower my fingers go white again.

Just to echo those above, I have Reynauds in my hands and like Pete, it is worst when cycling in winter.

I find if I can keep my wrists warm it make a huge difference. An old pair of wool hiking socks with the foot chopped off are useful makeshift wrist warmers.

Huh. You learn something new everyday. I'd put my dead-man's fingers down to simple old age, but maybe there's another explanation.
I was at Wolf's Pit the other week, and a woman asked me to take her photo, and recoiled in horror when I took the phone off of her. She actually said something along the lines of 'Oh my god what's happened to your fingers?'
It's one of the reasons I moved to bib magnets - I was forever putting pins through my fingers without noticing.

I have this too!

I have tried quite a few things, but most of all I find that making sure I am fully hydrated as much as possible really helps reduce the number of 'incidents'. This is purely anecdotal.

I use a 'water tracker' and religiously add every drink I have to it so I can keep a check on my intake against the level I have set for myself as a minimum daily requirement.

Sometimes this means I drink more than I actually need, but I'd rather be getting rid of a little excess than not having enough.

Hope this helps :)

I used to get sore toes in the winter. Wear socks at night (if you don't already).

White fingers/toes here too.

I find that a windproof mit over the top of good gloves really makes a difference to my hands in the winter. I got a pair of the super thin montane mitts the other year for the Highlander and wearing these over my gloves was a revelation for me.

My feet go white/numb as well in winter, especially when running through freezing bogs. Neoprene socks are the best things I've found for my feet so far (from a sailing shop). Don't stop my feet going white but really help the pain/numbness while out. Wearing these I sometimes don't realise my toes have "gone" until I take my shoes off.

Hehe sometimes I wonder what my neigbours think I'm doing when the blood comes back into my feet while standing in the shower. :D

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Originally Posted by neilly

I've had Raynaud's in my hands for years. The first time it happened I thought my fingers were going to fall off! Dead man's fingers. It only happens to me after a run, especially if it's been wet and windy. Just cold and I'm fine. It always comes on about 10 minutes after I stop and lasts 30 minutes or so. It's quite uncomfortable when the blood comes back in. My wife says I've always been a 'cold person'! My hands are always cold as are my feet. She likes nothing better than me warning my feet up on her back in bed. She says I need to fatten up a bit.
The GP offered my beta blockers but I don't like to take stuff unless it's necessary. Beta blockers can make you feel a bit slowed up. Even if I wear gloves it happens so I just accept it.
It seems to be quite common up here, I think circulatory problems are rife in Scotland.

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Beta-blockers make cold hands worse. Not good for runners in general as they slow the heart, but sometimes there is no alternative. Beta-blockers are, approximately, the opposite of the Salbutamol inhalers that are so popular in cycling.
Dexshell waterproof socks - NB not Sealskin - worn over the winter, with Injinji liners underneath, prevented my usual chilblains - highly recommended.

I THINK that I have Reynauds but intend to obtain an appointment with my GP to verify that it is Reynauds and not some underlying issue - Just heard that an old colleague from work, a keen cyclist who never missed the 15 miles each way commute on his bike, always seemed as fit as a fiddle and never carried an ounce of fat but always wore gloves even in summer, thinking that he had Reynauds; has just dropped dead whilst out cycling at the age of 71. A postmortem has revealed that he did not have Reynauds but a circulatory blockage which could have been cleared with a very simple procedure if it had been diagnosed.

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Originally Posted by wheezing donkey

er, thinking that he had Reynaudse did not have Reynauds but a circulatory blockage which could have been cleared with a very simple procedure if it had been diagnosed.

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Good idea.

My son (who is a NHS Consultant) does not look favourably on self-diagnosis.

And given that it takes approaching 20 years of university study and hospital experience to become a consultant, he might have a valid point of view.

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Originally Posted by wheezing donkey

I THINK that I have Reynauds but intend to obtain an appointment with my GP to verify that it is Reynauds and not some underlying issue - Just heard that an old colleague from work, a keen cyclist who never missed the 15 miles each way commute on his bike, always seemed as fit as a fiddle and never carried an ounce of fat but always wore gloves even in summer, thinking that he had Reynauds; has just dropped dead whilst out cycling at the age of 71. A postmortem has revealed that he did not have Reynauds but a circulatory blockage which could have been cleared with a very simple procedure if it had been diagnosed.

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Most cases of Raynaud's will not show up on a PM. Only where the Raynaud's is secondary to another condition, such as Scleroderma, will Raynaud's be able to be inferred at PM. I would be interested to know where the blockage was - was it Aortic Stenosis? Where ever the blockage, he may have had Raynaud's as well - these things are not mutually exclusive.

I finally got around to making a doctor's appointment.

My hands looked o.k. whilst I was with the doctor, despite not having worn gloves all day. From my description of the symptoms and the circumstances under which they occur, he was certain that it's Reynauds.
He felt my pulse and reckoned that it is so strong that he can rule out any possibility of an underlying blockage.
Basically I'm now a relatively happy bunny ..... just need to keep good gloves to hand, particularly at this time of the year.

Ian.