Symptoms

Symptoms

Common symptoms of CMT can include:

• Weakness and loss of muscle in your feet and lower legs
• Foot abnormalities, including high arches and bent toes, or hammer toes
• Foot dropping (difficulty lifting your foot) while walking
• Numbness, tingling, burning and decreased ability to feel temperature in your hands and feet
• Pain in your hands and feet
• Weakness and loss of muscle in hands
• In rare cases, CMT may affect the muscles that help you breathe

CMT symptoms vary from person to person. Symptoms typically begin in your feet and legs and progress to your hands and arms over time. The onset of CMT symptoms typically occurs darning teenage and young adult years. Most people with CMT can manage the symptoms and live normal and active lives.

If not managed properly, or left untreated, CMT can result in:

• Injuries from falls due to decreased awareness of the position or movement of the extremities (proprioception)
• Injuries or infections of the feet that go unnoticed because of decreased ability to feel pain and temperature

Certain medications can make symptoms of CMT worse. Talk to your neurologist about your medication list.