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Peripheral neuropathy
 
 
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Peripheral neuropathy is the term for damage to nerve
Nerve

A nerve is an enclosed, cable-like bundle of Peripheral nervous system axons . A nerve provides a common pathway for the electrochemical nerve impulses that are transmitted along each of the axons....
s of the peripheral nervous system
Peripheral nervous system

The peripheral nervous system resides or extends outside the central nervous system , which consists of the brain and spinal cord. The main function of the PNS is to connect the CNS to the limbs and organs....
, which may be caused either by diseases of the nerve
Nerve

A nerve is an enclosed, cable-like bundle of Peripheral nervous system axons . A nerve provides a common pathway for the electrochemical nerve impulses that are transmitted along each of the axons....
 or from the side-effects
Adverse effect (medicine)

In medicine, an adverse effect is a harmful and undesired effect resulting from a medication or other intervention such as chemotherapy or surgery....
 of systemic illness. Peripheral neuropathies vary in their presentation and origin, and may affect the nerve
Nerve

A nerve is an enclosed, cable-like bundle of Peripheral nervous system axons . A nerve provides a common pathway for the electrochemical nerve impulses that are transmitted along each of the axons....
 or the neuromuscular junction
Neuromuscular junction

A neuromuscular junction is the synapse or junction of the axon terminal of a motoneuron with the motor end plate, the highly-excitable region of muscle plasma membrane responsible for initiation of action potentials across the muscle's surface, ultimately causing the muscle to contract....
.

causes are broadly grouped as follows:















Many of the diseases of the peripheral nervous system may present similarly to muscle problems (myopathies
Myopathy

In medicine, a myopathy is a muscular disease in which the muscle fibers do not function for any one of many reasons, resulting in muscular weakness....
), and so it is important to develop approaches for assessing sensory and motor disturbances in patient
Patient

A patient is any person who receives medical attention, care, or Therapy. The person is most often illness or injured and in need of treatment by a physician or other Health care provider, although one who is visiting a physician for a routine check-up may also be viewed as a patient....
s so that a physician
Physician

A physician, medical practitioner, doctor of medicine, or medical doctor practices medicine, and is concerned with maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease and injury....
 may make an accurate diagnosis.

pheral neuropathies may either be symmetrical and generalized or focal and multifocal, which is usually a good indicator of the cause of the peripheral nerve disease.

ralized peripheral neuropathies are symmetrical, and usually due to various systematic illnesses and disease processes that affect the peripheral nervous system
Peripheral nervous system

The peripheral nervous system resides or extends outside the central nervous system , which consists of the brain and spinal cord. The main function of the PNS is to connect the CNS to the limbs and organs....
 in its entirety. They are further subdivided into several categories:







e with diseases or dysfunctions of their peripheral nerves can present with problems in any of the normal peripheral nerve functions.

In terms of sensory function, there are commonly loss of function (negative) symptoms, which include numb
Numb

Numb may refer to:*Paresthesia, a loss of physical sensation or numbness*NUMB , a human gene*Numb , an album by Hammerbox*The Numb E.P., an EP by Baboon...
ness, tremor
Tremor

Tremor is an unintentional, somewhat rhythmic, muscle movement involving to-and-fro movements of one or more body parts. It is the most common of all involuntary movements and can affect the hands, arms, head, face, vocal cords, trunk, and legs....
, and gait imbalance.

Gain of function (positive) symptoms include tingling
Tingling

Tingling or Tili was a tribe union west of China before 300 BC. After c.300BC they were called tieloe or kauko. The avars was the tieloe tribe union most west members....
, pain
Pain

Pain, in the sense of physical pain, is a typical sensory experience that may be described as the unpleasant awareness of a noxious stimulus or bodily harm....
, itch
Itch

Itch is an unpleasant sensation that evokes the desire or reflex to scratch. Itch has resisted many attempts to classify it as any one type of sensory experience....
ing, crawling
Crawling

Crawling is a form of animal locomotion generally involving slow movement along the ground, such as that seen in snakes, snails and earthworms....
, and pins and needles
Paresthesia

Paresthesia is a sensation of tingling, pricking, or numbness of a person's skin with no apparent long-term physical effect. It is more generally known as the feeling of "pins and needles" or of a human limb being "asleep" ....
.






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Encyclopedia


Peripheral neuropathy is the term for damage to nerve
Nerve

A nerve is an enclosed, cable-like bundle of Peripheral nervous system axons . A nerve provides a common pathway for the electrochemical nerve impulses that are transmitted along each of the axons....
s of the peripheral nervous system
Peripheral nervous system

The peripheral nervous system resides or extends outside the central nervous system , which consists of the brain and spinal cord. The main function of the PNS is to connect the CNS to the limbs and organs....
, which may be caused either by diseases of the nerve
Nerve

A nerve is an enclosed, cable-like bundle of Peripheral nervous system axons . A nerve provides a common pathway for the electrochemical nerve impulses that are transmitted along each of the axons....
 or from the side-effects
Adverse effect (medicine)

In medicine, an adverse effect is a harmful and undesired effect resulting from a medication or other intervention such as chemotherapy or surgery....
 of systemic illness. Peripheral neuropathies vary in their presentation and origin, and may affect the nerve
Nerve

A nerve is an enclosed, cable-like bundle of Peripheral nervous system axons . A nerve provides a common pathway for the electrochemical nerve impulses that are transmitted along each of the axons....
 or the neuromuscular junction
Neuromuscular junction

A neuromuscular junction is the synapse or junction of the axon terminal of a motoneuron with the motor end plate, the highly-excitable region of muscle plasma membrane responsible for initiation of action potentials across the muscle's surface, ultimately causing the muscle to contract....
.

Causes

The causes are broadly grouped as follows:
  • Genetic diseases: Friedreich's ataxia
    Friedreich's ataxia

    Friedreich's ataxia is an inherited disease that causes Progressive illness to the nervous system resulting in symptoms ranging from gait disturbance and speech problems to heart disease....
    , Charcot-Marie-Tooth syndrome


  • Metabolic/Endocrine: diabetes mellitus
    Diabetes mellitus

    Diabetes mellitus , often referred to simply as diabetes , is a syndrome of disordered metabolism, usually due to a combination of genetic disorder and environmental causes, resulting in abnormally high blood sugar levels ....
     , Chronic renal failure
    Chronic renal failure

    Chronic kidney disease , also known as chronic renal disease, is a progressive loss of kidney over a period of months or years. The symptoms of worsening kidney function are unspecific, and might include feeling malaise and experiencing a anorexia....
    , porphyria
    Porphyria

    Porphyrias are a group of inherited or acquired disorders of certain enzymes in the heme biosynthetic pathway . They are broadly classified as acute porphyrias and cutaneous porphyrias, based on the site of the overproduction and accumulation of the porphyrins ....
    , amyloidosis
    Amyloidosis

    In medicine, amyloidosis refers to a variety of conditions in which amyloid proteins are abnormally deposited in organ s and/or Tissue s. A protein is described as being amyloid if, due to an alteration in its secondary structure, it takes on a particular aggregated insoluble form similar to the beta-pleated sheet....
    , liver failure
    Liver failure

    Acute liver failure is the appearance of severe complications rapidly after the first signs of liver disease , and indicates that the liver has sustained severe damage ....
    , hypothyroidism
    Hypothyroidism

    Hypothyroidism is the disease state in humans and in animals caused by insufficient production of thyroid hormone by the thyroid gland. Cretinism is a form of hypothyroidism found in infants....


  • Toxic causes: alcoholism
    Alcoholism

    Alcoholism is a term with multiple and sometimes conflicting definitions to describe the detrimental effects of alcohol intake.In common and historic usage, alcoholism refers to any condition that results in the continued consumption of alcoholic beverages despite health problems and negative social consequences....
    , drugs (vincristine
    Vincristine

    Vincristine , also known as leurocristine, is a vinca alkaloid from the Catharanthus roseus , formerly Vinca rosea and hence its name....
    , phenytoin
    Phenytoin

    Phenytoin sodium is a commonly used antiepileptic. Phenytoin acts to dampen the unwanted, runaway brain activity seen in seizure by reducing electrical conductance among brain cells by stabilizing the inactive state of voltage gated sodium channels....
    , isoniazid
    Isoniazid

    Isoniazid is an organic compound that is the first-line antituberculosis medication in prevention and treatment. Isoniazid is never used on its own to treat active tuberculosis because resistance quickly develops....
    ), organic metals, heavy metals
    Heavy metals

    A heavy metal is a member of an ill-defined subset of elements that exhibit metallic properties, which would mainly include the transition metals, some metalloids, lanthanides, and actinides....
    , excess intake of Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine)]


  • Fluoroquinolone toxicity: Irreversible neuropathy is a serious adverse reaction of Fluoroquinolone drugs


  • Inflammatory diseases: Guillain-Barré syndrome
    Guillain-Barré syndrome

    Guillain-Barr? syndrome is an acute inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy , an Autoimmune Disease disease affecting the peripheral nervous system, usually triggered by an acute infectious process....
    , systemic lupus erythematosis, leprosy
    Leprosy

    Leprosy , or Hansen's disease , is a Chronic disease caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium lepromatosis. Leprosy is primarily a granulomatous disease of the Peripheral nervous system and Mucous membrane of the upper respiratory tract; skin lesions are the primary external symptom....
    , Sjögren's syndrome
    Sjögren's syndrome

    Sj?gren's syndrome is an autoimmunity in which immune cells attack and destroy the exocrine glands that produce tears and saliva.It is named after Swedish ophthalmology Henrik Sj?gren , who first described it....


  • Vitamin deficiency states: vitamin B12
    Cyanocobalamin

    Cyanocobalamin is an especially common vitamer of the Vitamin B12. It is the most famous vitamer of the family, because it is chemically the most air-stable, and it is the easiest to crystallize and therefore easiest to purify after it is produced by bacterial fermentation....
    , vitamin A
    Vitamin A

    Vitamin A, a bi-polar molecule formed with bi-polar covalent bonds between carbon and hydrogen, is linked to a family of similarly shaped molecules, the retinoids, which complete the remainder of the vitamin sequence....
    , vitamin E
    Vitamin E

    Vitamin E is the collective name for a set of 8 related a-, ?-, ?-, and d-tocopherols and the corresponding four tocotrienols, which are fat-soluble vitamins with antioxidant properties....
    , thiamin(vitaminB1)


  • Physical trauma: compression, pinching, cutting, projectile injuries (i.e. gunshot wound),strokes including prolonged occlusion of blood flow


  • Others: shingles, malignant
    Malignant

    Malignant is a medical term used to describe a severe and progressively worsening disease. The term is most familiar as a description of cancer....
     disease, HIV
    HIV

    Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that can lead to AIDS , a condition in humans in which the immune system begins to fail, leading to life-threatening opportunistic infections....
     , radiation
    Radiation

    In physics, radiation describes any process in which energy emitted by one body travels through a medium or through space, ultimately to be absorbed by another body....
    , chemotherapy
    Chemotherapy

    Chemotherapy, in its most general sense, refers to treatment of disease by chemicals that kill cells, specifically those of micro-organisms or cancer....


Many of the diseases of the peripheral nervous system may present similarly to muscle problems (myopathies
Myopathy

In medicine, a myopathy is a muscular disease in which the muscle fibers do not function for any one of many reasons, resulting in muscular weakness....
), and so it is important to develop approaches for assessing sensory and motor disturbances in patient
Patient

A patient is any person who receives medical attention, care, or Therapy. The person is most often illness or injured and in need of treatment by a physician or other Health care provider, although one who is visiting a physician for a routine check-up may also be viewed as a patient....
s so that a physician
Physician

A physician, medical practitioner, doctor of medicine, or medical doctor practices medicine, and is concerned with maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease and injury....
 may make an accurate diagnosis.

Types

Peripheral neuropathies may either be symmetrical and generalized or focal and multifocal, which is usually a good indicator of the cause of the peripheral nerve disease.

Generalized peripheral neuropathy

Generalized peripheral neuropathies are symmetrical, and usually due to various systematic illnesses and disease processes that affect the peripheral nervous system
Peripheral nervous system

The peripheral nervous system resides or extends outside the central nervous system , which consists of the brain and spinal cord. The main function of the PNS is to connect the CNS to the limbs and organs....
 in its entirety. They are further subdivided into several categories:

  • Distal axonopathies
    Distal axonopathy

    Distal axonopathy is a type of peripheral neuropathy that results from some metabolic or toxic derangement of peripheral nervous system neurons....
     are the result of some metabolic or toxic derangement of neuron
    Neuron

    Neurons are responsive cell in the nervous system that process and transmit information by electrochemical Signal . They are the core components of the brain, the vertebrate spinal cord, the invertebrate ventral nerve cord, and the peripheral nerves....
    s. They may be caused by metabolic diseases such as diabetes, renal failure
    Renal failure

    Renal failure or kidney failure is a situation in which the kidneys fail to function adequately. It is divided in acute and chronic forms; either form may be due to a large number of other medical problems....
    , deficiency syndromes such as malnutrition
    Malnutrition

    Malnutrition is a general term for a medical condition caused by an improper or inadequate diet and nutrition.According to the World Health Organization, hunger and malnutrition are the single gravest threats to the world's public health and malnutrition is by far the biggest contributor to child mortality, present in half of all cases....
     and alcoholism
    Alcoholism

    Alcoholism is a term with multiple and sometimes conflicting definitions to describe the detrimental effects of alcohol intake.In common and historic usage, alcoholism refers to any condition that results in the continued consumption of alcoholic beverages despite health problems and negative social consequences....
    , or the effects of toxin
    Toxin

    A toxin is a poisonous substance produced by living cells or organisms. For a toxic substance not produced by living organisms, "toxicant" is the more appropriate term, and "toxics" is an acceptable plural....
    s or drugs
    Medication

    A pharmaceutical drug, also referred to as medicine or medicament, can be loosely defined as any substance intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease....
    .


  • Myelinopathies
    Myelinopathy

    Myelinopathy is due to primary destruction of myelin or the myelinating Schwann cells, which leaves the axon intact, but causes an acute failure of impulse conduction....
     are due to a primary attack on myelin
    Myelin

    Myelin is an electrically-insulating dielectric material that forms a layer, the myelin sheath. Usually, myelin surrounds only the axon of a neuron....
     causing an acute failure of impulse conduction. The most common cause is acute inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (AIDP; aka Guillain-Barré syndrome
    Guillain-Barré syndrome

    Guillain-Barr? syndrome is an acute inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy , an Autoimmune Disease disease affecting the peripheral nervous system, usually triggered by an acute infectious process....
    ), though other causes include chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy
    Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy

    Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy is an acquired autoimmune disorder of the peripheral nervous system but often can have central nervous system involvement....
     (CIDP), genetic
    Genetics

    Genetics , a discipline of biology, is the science of heredity and Genetic variation in living organisms. The fact that living things inherit traits from their parents has been used since prehistoric times to improve crop plants and animals through selective breeding....
     metabolic disorders (e.g., leukodystrophy
    Leukodystrophy

    Leukodystrophy refers to a group of disorders characterized by progressive degeneration of the white matter of the brain. The leukodystrophies are caused by imperfect growth or development of the myelin sheath, the fatty covering that acts as an insulator around nerve fibers....
    ), or toxins.


  • Neuronopathies
    Neuronopathy

    Neuronopathy is dysfunction due to damage to neurons of the peripheral nervous system , resulting in a peripheral neuropathy.It may be caused by motor neurone diseases, sensory neuronopathies , toxic substances or autonomic nervous system dysfunction....
     are the result of destruction of peripheral nervous system
    Peripheral nervous system

    The peripheral nervous system resides or extends outside the central nervous system , which consists of the brain and spinal cord. The main function of the PNS is to connect the CNS to the limbs and organs....
     (PNS) neuron
    Neuron

    Neurons are responsive cell in the nervous system that process and transmit information by electrochemical Signal . They are the core components of the brain, the vertebrate spinal cord, the invertebrate ventral nerve cord, and the peripheral nerves....
    s. They may be caused by motor neurone disease
    Motor neurone disease

    The motor neurone diseases are a group of progressive neurological disorders that destroy motor neuron, the cells that control voluntary muscle activity including speaking, walking, breathing, swallowing and general movement of the body....
    s, sensory neuronopathies (e.g., Herpes zoster
    Herpes zoster

    Herpes zoster , commonly known as shingles, is a viral disease characterized by a painful skin rash with blisters in a limited area on one side of the body, often in a stripe....
    ), toxins or autonomic
    Autonomic nervous system

    The autonomic nervous system is the part of the peripheral nervous system that acts as a control system, maintaining human homeostasis in the body....
     dysfunction. Neurotoxins
    Neurotoxicity

    Neurotoxicity occurs when the exposure to natural or artificial toxic substances, which are called neurotoxins, alters the normal activity of the nervous system in such a way as to cause damage to nervous tissue....
     may cause neuronopathies, such as the chemotherapy
    Chemotherapy

    Chemotherapy, in its most general sense, refers to treatment of disease by chemicals that kill cells, specifically those of micro-organisms or cancer....
     agent vincristine
    Vincristine

    Vincristine , also known as leurocristine, is a vinca alkaloid from the Catharanthus roseus , formerly Vinca rosea and hence its name....
    .


Signs and symptoms

Those with diseases or dysfunctions of their peripheral nerves can present with problems in any of the normal peripheral nerve functions.

In terms of sensory function, there are commonly loss of function (negative) symptoms, which include numb
Numb

Numb may refer to:*Paresthesia, a loss of physical sensation or numbness*NUMB , a human gene*Numb , an album by Hammerbox*The Numb E.P., an EP by Baboon...
ness, tremor
Tremor

Tremor is an unintentional, somewhat rhythmic, muscle movement involving to-and-fro movements of one or more body parts. It is the most common of all involuntary movements and can affect the hands, arms, head, face, vocal cords, trunk, and legs....
, and gait imbalance.

Gain of function (positive) symptoms include tingling
Tingling

Tingling or Tili was a tribe union west of China before 300 BC. After c.300BC they were called tieloe or kauko. The avars was the tieloe tribe union most west members....
, pain
Pain

Pain, in the sense of physical pain, is a typical sensory experience that may be described as the unpleasant awareness of a noxious stimulus or bodily harm....
, itch
Itch

Itch is an unpleasant sensation that evokes the desire or reflex to scratch. Itch has resisted many attempts to classify it as any one type of sensory experience....
ing, crawling
Crawling

Crawling is a form of animal locomotion generally involving slow movement along the ground, such as that seen in snakes, snails and earthworms....
, and pins and needles
Paresthesia

Paresthesia is a sensation of tingling, pricking, or numbness of a person's skin with no apparent long-term physical effect. It is more generally known as the feeling of "pins and needles" or of a human limb being "asleep" ....
. Pain can become intense enough to require use of opioid (narcotic) drugs (i.e., morphine, oxycodone).

Skin can become so hypersensitive that patients are prohibited from having anything touch certain parts of their body, especially the feet. People with this degree of sensitivity cannot have a bedsheet touch their feet or wear socks or shoes, and eventually become housebound.

Motor symptoms include loss of function (negative) symptoms of weakness, tiredness
Fatigue (physical)

Fatigue is a weariness caused by exertion. It can describe a range of afflictions, varying from a general state of wikt:lethargy to a specific work-induced burning sensation within one's muscles....
, heaviness, and gait abnormalities
Gait abnormality

Gait abnormality is a deviation from normal gait that typically results from dysfunction of the nervous system and/or musculoskeletal systems....
; and gain of function (positive) symptoms of cramps, tremor, and fasciculation
Fasciculation

A fasciculation is a small, local, involuntary muscle contraction visible under the skin arising from the spontaneous discharge of a bundle of skeletal muscle fibers....
s.

There is also pain
Pain

Pain, in the sense of physical pain, is a typical sensory experience that may be described as the unpleasant awareness of a noxious stimulus or bodily harm....
 in the muscles (myalgia
Myalgia

Myalgia means "muscle pain" and is a symptom of many diseases and disorders. The most common causes are overuse or over-stretching of a muscle or group of muscles....
), cramps, etc
ETC

The abbreviation 'etc' may stand for:* et cetera, a Latin expression meaning "and other things" or "and so on"* /etc, a computer directory found in unix operating systems...
., and there may also be autonomic
Autonomic nervous system

The autonomic nervous system is the part of the peripheral nervous system that acts as a control system, maintaining human homeostasis in the body....
 dysfunction.

During physical examination
Physical examination

File:Reeve 978.jpgPhysical examination or clinical examination is the process by which a health care provider investigates the body of a patient for sign of disease....
, those with generalized peripheral neuropathies most commonly have distal sensory or motor and sensory loss, though those with a pathology
Pathology

Pathology is the study and diagnosis of disease through examination of Organ , tissue , bodily fluids and whole bodies . The term also encompasses the related science study of disease processes, called General pathology....
 (problem) of the peripheral nerves may be perfectly normal; may show proximal weakness, as in some inflammatory neuropathies like Guillain-Barré syndrome
Guillain-Barré syndrome

Guillain-Barr? syndrome is an acute inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy , an Autoimmune Disease disease affecting the peripheral nervous system, usually triggered by an acute infectious process....
); or may show focal sensory disturbance or weakness, such as in mononeuropathies
Mononeuropathy

Mononeuropathy is a type of neuropathy that only affects a single nerve. It is diagnostically useful to distinguish them from peripheral neuropathy and autonomic neuropathy because the limitation in scope makes it more likely that the cause is a localized trauma or infection....
, radiculopathies
Radiculopathy

Radiculopathy is not a specific condition, but rather a description of a problem in which one or more nerves are affected and do not work properly ....
 and plexopathies
Plexopathy

A plexopathy is a disorder affecting a network of nerves, blood vessels, or lymph vessels....
. Ankle jerk reflex
Ankle jerk reflex

The ankle jerk reflex, also known as the Achilles reflex, occurs when the Achilles tendon is tapped while the foot is dorsiflexion. A positive result would be the jerking of the foot towards its plantar surface....
 is classically absent in peripheral neuropathy.

Common disorders of the peripheral nerves include focal entrapment neuropathies (e.g., carpal tunnel syndrome
Carpal tunnel syndrome

Carpal tunnel syndrome , or median neuropathy at the wrist, is a medical condition in which the median nerve is compressed at the wrist, leading to paresthesias, numbness and muscle weakness in the hand....
), generalized peripheral neuropathies (e.g., diabetic neuropathy
Diabetic neuropathy

Diabetic neuropathies are neuropathy disorders that are associated with diabetes mellitus. These conditions are thought to result from diabetic microvascular disease involving small blood vessels that supply nerves ....
), plexopathies (e.g., brachial neuritis) and radiculopathies (e.g., of cranial nerve VII; Facial nerve
Facial nerve

The facial nerve is the seventh of twelve paired cranial nerves. It emerges from the brainstem between the pons and the medulla oblongata, and controls the muscles of facial expression, and taste to the anterior two-thirds of the tongue....
).

Treatment

Many treatment strategies for peripheral neuropathy are symptomatic. Some current research in animal models has shown that neurotrophin-3
Neurotrophin-3

Neurotrophin 3, also known as NTF3, is a human gene.The protein encoded by this gene, NT-3 is a neurotrophic factor, in the NGF -family of neurotrophins....
 can oppose the demyelination present in some peripheral neuropathies.

A range of drugs that act on the central nervous system such as drugs originally intended as antidepressants and antiepileptic drugs have been found to be useful in managing neuropathic pain. Commonly used treatments include using a Tricyclic antidepressant
Tricyclic antidepressant

Tricyclic antidepressants are a class of antidepressant Medications first used in the 1950s. They are named after the drugs' molecular structure, which contains three rings of atoms ....
 (such as amitriptyline
Amitriptyline

Amitriptyline hydrochloride is a tricyclic antidepressant Medication. It is a white, odorless, crystalline compound which is freely soluble in water; it is usually dispensed in tablet form....
) and antiepileptic therapies such as gabapentin
Gabapentin

Gabapentin is a Gamma-aminobutyric_acid analogue. It was originally developed for the treatment of epilepsy, and currently, gabapentin is widely used to relieve pain, especially neuropathic pain....
 or sodium valproate
Sodium valproate

Sodium valproate or valproate sodium is the sodium salt of valproic acid and is an anticonvulsant used in the treatment of epilepsy and bipolar disorder, as well as other psychiatric conditions requiring the administration of a mood stabilizer....
. These have the advantage that besides being effective in many cases they are relatively low cost.

Pregabalin
Pregabalin

Pregabalin is an anticonvulsant drug used for neuropathic pain and as an adjunct therapy for partial seizures with or without secondary Seizure_types#Generalized_seizures in adults....
 (INN) (pronounced /pr?'gćb?l?n/) is an anticonvulsant drug used for neuropathic pain. It has also been found effective for generalized anxiety disorder. It was designed as a more potent successor to gabapentin but is significantly more expensive, especially now the patent on gabapentin has expired and gabapentin is available as a generic drug
Generic drug

A generic drug is a medication which isproduced and distributed without patent protection. The generic drug may still have a patent on the formulation but not on the active ingredient....
. Pregabalin is marketed by Pfizer under the trade name .

Other treatments that can be effective include TENS (Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation) and complementary therapies.

See also

  • Neuropathy
    Neuropathy

    Neuropathy is a medical term describing disorders of the nerves of the peripheral nervous system It is usually considered equivalent to peripheral neuropathy....
  • Myopathy
    Myopathy

    In medicine, a myopathy is a muscular disease in which the muscle fibers do not function for any one of many reasons, resulting in muscular weakness....
  • Myelinopathy
    Myelinopathy

    Myelinopathy is due to primary destruction of myelin or the myelinating Schwann cells, which leaves the axon intact, but causes an acute failure of impulse conduction....
  • Guillain-Barré syndrome
    Guillain-Barré syndrome

    Guillain-Barr? syndrome is an acute inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy , an Autoimmune Disease disease affecting the peripheral nervous system, usually triggered by an acute infectious process....


External links

  • at National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
    National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases

    The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases , of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, conducts and supports research on many of the most serious diseases affecting public health....


es:Neuropatía periférica it:Neuropatia periferica