Neuropathy

What is peripheral neuropathy?

Peripheral neuropathy is a general term that refers to a disorder of the peripheral nerves and affects more than 20 million people in the United States. When there is damage to the nerves, people may experience numbness and tingling that begins in the arms and feet. If the nerve damage worsens, it may spread up the arms and legs and the patient may start to experience burning, throbbing and loss of sensation. Some forms of neuropathy can involve damage to one nerve or multiple nerves affecting all limbs. If the motor nerves are damaged, other symptoms such as muscle weakness and painful cramps can occur.

What causes peripheral neuropathy?

Peripheral Neuropathy may be inherited or acquired. The causes can be associated with poor nutrition, physical injury to a nerve, toxins, alcoholism, vascular, and a number of medical conditions. While diabetes is the most common causes of peripheral neuropathy, often times no cause is found. In these situations, it is referred to as idiopathic peripheral neuropathy. Nearly 60% of people with diabetes suffer from diabetic neuropathy.

How is peripheral neuropathy treated?

As long as the nerves have not been killed, peripheral nerves have the (limited) ability to regenerate. The underlying condition must be treated first, followed by treatment that is focused on pain relief. Our new neuropathy treatment program is a combination of injection procedures with breakthrough technology that aids in relieving the pain. Many times this can be more effective than taking chronic pain meds and does not have the negative side effects of common neuropathy pain medicines. The effects of the treatments can be felt on the very first visit.

To help determine whether a patient is a good candidate for our neuropathy program, our physicians provide an accurate diagnosis through state of the art diagnostic testing and proper history and physical examination. Our patients who complete our neuropathy program are experiencing relief of their pain symptoms and achieving a much more active lifestyle, giving them freedom and mobility.