Urgent symptoms

Topics to discuss

• Sudden weakness, numbness, or drooping on one side of the face or body
• Sudden confusion, trouble speaking or understanding, or trouble seeing
• The worst headache of your life, or a headache that peaks within seconds
• Headache with fever and a stiff neck, or after a head injury
• Dizziness with fainting, double vision, or trouble walking
• A first seizure
• If any of these happen, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room.

Choosing the next step

Use the warning signs above to decide when emergency help is needed. This page cannot check your symptoms or tell you that it is safe to wait. If symptoms are severe, sudden, or getting worse quickly, seek urgent medical help. A routine appointment request is not an emergency service, and a message may not be read right away.

For a life-threatening emergency, call 911. Do not drive yourself if you feel faint, confused, or unable to travel safely. If possible, have someone stay with you while help arrives. Bring your medicine list and allergy information if they are easy to reach, but do not delay emergency care to collect records.

Sources

• Headache — National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NIH)
• Migraine — MedlinePlus (National Library of Medicine)
• Peripheral Nerve Disorders — MedlinePlus (National Library of Medicine)
• Diabetic Neuropathy — National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIH)
• Dizziness and Vertigo — MedlinePlus (National Library of Medicine)
• Tremor — MedlinePlus (National Library of Medicine)
• Signs and Symptoms of Stroke — Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• The A1C Test & Diabetes — NIDDK (NIH)