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Arm pain can come from your neck or your shoulder. Leg pain can come from your back or your hip. They feel similar and they are treated completely differently. Three questions will point you to the right information — and the right specialist.
Which of these best describes your situation right now?
Those particular symptoms can point to a stroke, pressure on the spinal nerves, or an infection. All are treated in hours rather than days, and all need scans and a hospital on standby — which a clinic running by appointment cannot provide, however specialised.
Go to the nearest emergency department. If you cannot get there safely, or someone has collapsed, call 995 for an ambulance.
Call 995If none of those apply and you were unsure, go back — the clinic can almost certainly help.
You can book straight in with a neurosurgeon or an orthopaedic surgeon here — no GP visit first, no waiting on a referral letter. If your symptoms are severe or worsening, call and tell our staff; we will find you the earliest appointment we can.
Bring with you:
Call +65 8849 0677 Book online
Mon–Fri 9:00am–5:30pm · Sat 9:00am–1:00pm · Sun closed. Outside these hours, or if anything on the previous list develops, go to an emergency department instead.
Pick the area where you feel it most. If pain travels, choose where it starts.
Choose whichever is closest. These two patterns usually point in different directions.
If this is severe, or getting worse, you do not need a referral — call us directly on +65 8849 0677.
This is a guide to help you find the right information and the right specialist. It is not a diagnosis, and it cannot account for your history or examination. Only a consultation can do that. If your symptoms are worsening, see a doctor regardless of what this suggests.
No single symptom settles it, but the two patterns tend to separate along these lines. If your symptoms sit in both columns, that is common and worth an examination rather than more reading.
| More like a nerve problem | More like a bone or joint problem | |
|---|---|---|
| Character | Burning, electric, shooting, pins and needles | Dull or sharp ache, stiffness, grinding |
| Where | Travels down an arm or leg, often past a joint | Stays around one joint or one area |
| With it | Numbness, weakness, clumsiness, loss of sensation | Swelling, stiffness, restricted movement |
| Worse when | Coughing, sneezing, sitting or bending for long | Weight-bearing, using the joint, at end of range |
| Often starts | In the neck or lower back, felt elsewhere | Where it hurts |
Numbness in the fingers is the clearest example. It can come from a nerve compressed at the wrist, at the elbow, or in the neck. All three feel broadly similar to the person experiencing them. The treatment for each is different, and treating the wrong one changes nothing.
The same applies to leg pain. Pain down the back of the leg often starts in the lower back rather than in the leg itself, so treating the hip or knee will not resolve it.
Our neurosurgeon covers the brain, spine and nerves. Our orthopaedic surgeons cover joints, limbs, hand, foot and shoulder. Because both work from the same clinic, you do not need to guess correctly before booking, and you will not be sent elsewhere to find out which it is.
Neuro spine surgery · Orthopaedic surgery · All conditions treated
You do not need a referral. Book a consultation and we will work out which it is — bring any scans you already have.
