Spinal-cord involvement in diabetic peripheral neuropathy

The pathogenesis of diabetic distal symmetrical polyneuropathy (DSP) is poorly understood but there is some evidence that the disease process might extend beyond peripheral nerves. We used magnetic-resonance imaging to measure spinal-cord cross-sectional area in diabetic patients with and without DS...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Lancet (British edition) 2001-07, Vol.358 (9275), p.35-36
Main Authors: Eaton, Simon EM, Harris, Nigel D, Rajbhandari, Satyan M, Greenwood, Pam, Wilkinson, Iain D, Ward, John D, Griffiths, Paul D, Tesfaye, Solomon
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Aged
Diabetes
Diabetes mellitus
Diabetic Neuropathies - diagnosis
Female
Humans
Magnetic resonance
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Male
Medical research
Middle Aged
Neurologic Examination
Neurological disorders
Pathogenesis
Peripheral nerves
Peripheral neuropathy
Polyneuropathy
Reference Values
Spinal cord
Spinal Cord - pathology
Spinal Cord Diseases - diagnosis
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The pathogenesis of diabetic distal symmetrical polyneuropathy (DSP) is poorly understood but there is some evidence that the disease process might extend beyond peripheral nerves. We used magnetic-resonance imaging to measure spinal-cord cross-sectional area in diabetic patients with and without DSP and in healthy controls. There were significant differences in cord area between the groups at C4/5 and T3/4 (p=0·004 and p=0·033, respectively), with a smaller cord area in those with DSP compared with controls (p=0·001 and p=0·016 for C4/5 and T3/4, respectively). These results indicate that DSP is not simply a disease of the peripheral nerve and that there is substantial involvement of the spinal cord.
ISSN:0140-6736
1474-547X
DOI:10.1016/S0140-6736(00)05268-5