Which symptoms/complaints can cause a disorder of the vagus nerve?
In order to answer this question, it must first be clarified what exactly the “disturbance” is. Nerves are very sensitive and therefore easily irritated. However, they can exhibit both increased activity and decreased activity.
Everyone who has ever bumped his or her elbow knows that tingling and pain can also be a symptom. Symptoms of a disorder are caused by reduced or increased activity and can be as follows for the vagus: Nausea, stomach acidity, constipation or diarrhea, irregular or too fast heartbeat, hoarseness, difficulty swallowing, headache, increased sweating, cold hands and feet, constricted pupils and many other symptoms.Many of these symptoms are very unspecific, as they occur in many other diseases. However, if several of these symptoms occur simultaneously or consecutively, a disturbance of the vagus nerve should be considered in any case and clarified by a general practitioner.
Inflammation/irritation of the vagus nerve
Symptoms of nerve inflammation are mainly pain, numbness, muscle twitches and loss of nerve function. However, since the vagus hardly innervates skin and muscles, numbness and muscle twitches are rather rare. Inflammation is therefore mainly felt through pain and loss of function.
The location of the inflammation can be narrowed down based on the symptoms, but remains difficult to diagnose. The most susceptible area of the vagus is located in the throat and affects the upper laryngeal nerve. The main symptoms are hoarseness, pain when swallowing and coughing.
Is it possible to pinch the vagus nerve?
The vagus nerve usually runs along soft tissue organs and is thus very well protected against entrapment. There is, however, a place on the neck where this even occurs frequently. After the nerve emerges from the base of the skull, it runs along the first cervical vertebra together with the carotid artery and the great cervical vein. If the neck rotates strongly or if the vertebra is chronically malpositioned, compression of these pathways can occur (vagus compression syndrome).
