Important Points About Peripheral Neuropathy That You Need To Know

Peripheral neuropathy occurs when there is a problem in the peripheral nerves. The nerves would be sending messages from the central nervous system, the brain and the spinal cord to the remaining parts of the body. The peripheral nerves are responsible for letting the body know what sensation to feel. It, for example, alarms the hands when to feel cold.

Effects Of Peripheral Neuropathy

Peripheral neuropathy could sometimes cause a tingling or prickling sensation, numbness, and muscle weakness in several parts of our body. Peripheral neuropathy can also leave an impact on a number of different nerves. This means it can affect a variety of locations in various ways. It can also affect a single nerve or several nerves simultaneously.

Affects 20 Million US Citizens

Peripheral neuropathy is also linked with several underlying medical conditions. There are also many cases where the cause remains unidentifiable. It is known to exist in around 20 million people living in the United States (U.S.). This is an indeed staggering amount. In this article, we will be talking about the important points involving peripheral neuropathy.

Some Causes

Neuropathy is a complication that affects an alarming number of different medical conditions. It includes the autonomic nerves, the motor nerves, and the sensory nerves. It is known to have an impact on a single nerve or nerve set, like in Bell’s Palsy affecting the facial nerve. Physical trauma, repetitive injury, infection, metabolic problems, and exposure to toxins and some drugs are some known causes. Diabetic people are also on a high risk to be affected by neuropathy.

Treatment

Carpal tunnel syndrome is one good example when we are talking about a mononeuropathy. This only affects a single nerve. Treatment is used so as to uncover the underlying issue or cause that may affect the person. Treatment also has a goal to offer symptomatic pain relief and prevent any further damage that the person could face in the future.

Other Harmful Causes

When we talk about a person who is affected by diabetic neuropathy, taking care of the high blood sugars can prevent further nerve damage. It is proven to be quite helpful in the process of dialing down the issues. For toxic causes, hiding away the affected areas from the exposure to a suspected toxin, or getting rid of a drug, can halt impending nerve damage.

Drug Treatment

Medications can indeed reduce the pain and calm the burning, numbness, and tingling.

Drug treatment for neuropathic pain may include:

-drugs normally used for epilepsy, such as carbamazepine
-antidepressants, such as venlafaxine
-opioid painkillers, for example, oxycodone or tramadol
-Opioid painkillers come with warnings about safety risks
-Duloxetine may help people with chemotherapy-induced neuropathy