Diabetic Neuropathy - Causes and Symptoms

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Diabetic Neuropathy is a complication of diabetes that affects the peripheral nerves -- i.e. those that are outside of the brain and spinal cord, such as nerves in the arms, legs, hands, and feet. Neuropathies leads to numbness and sometimes pain and weakness in the affected areas. It can also affect strength and feeling in different body parts, heart ability to keep up with the body's needs, intestines ability to digest food, and for men ability to achieve an erection.

Diabetes patient normally develop temporary or permanent damages to nerves tissue at any time. Significant clinical neuropathy can develop within the first 10 years, but the longer a person has diabetes, the greater the risk. Study shown that 60% of diabetes patient have some form of neuropathy, but most cases there isn't any symptoms. Approximately 30% - 40% diabetes patient have symptoms indicating neuropathy, compared with 10% of those without diabetes. The highest rates of neuropathy are among people who have had the disease for at least 25 years.

Causes
The exact causes of diabetic neuropathy are unknown, several factors have been mentioned in medical literature as possible causes contribute to the disorder. They are,

• metabolic factors, such as high blood glucose, possibly low levels of insulin, abnormal blood fat level, and long duration of diabetes.

• neurovascular factors, leading to blood vessels damages that supply oxygen and nutrients to the nerves.

• autoimmune factors that cause inflammation in nerves.

• mechanical injury to nerves.

• inherited factors that may make some people more susceptible to nerve disease.

• lifestyle factors such as smoking and alcohol use.

Symptoms of Diabetic Neuropathy
Depend on the type of neuropathy and which nerves are affected, some people might have no symptoms at all. The following are some of the symptoms:

• numbness, tingling, or pain in the toes, feet, legs, hands, arms, and fingers

• speech impairment

• wasting of the muscles of the feet or hands

• indigestion, nausea, or vomiting

• diarrhea or constipation

• facial dropping

• dizziness or faintness due to a drop in postural blood pressure

• problems with urination

• impotence or erectile dysfunction, or vaginal dryness

• weakness

Often, symptoms are minor at first, since most nerve damages occurs over several years, mild cases may go unnoticed for a long time.

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