Are You Suffering From Peripheral Neuropathy?

Peripheral neuropathy patients suffer greatly. Based on the experience of many physicians including myself, peripheral neuropathy patients would often have the symptoms for years but would not seek medical help until the symptoms worsen.

These symptoms initially may include such things as mild loss of sensation of the hands and the feet, progressive worsening of tingling and numbness that will often times wake the patient at night, or completely disturbed sleep.

Also, we find that a lot of neuropathy patients suffer from a combination of these annoying symptoms. Aside from the presence of tingling and numbness, it also includes shooting pains. I have had many patients tell me that one of the most annoying symptoms, especially in colder climates, is the coolness of the feet as well as the (trophic) changes that occur in the skin. Sometimes, the skin would have extreme dryness, cracking, fragility etc.

The diagnosis of peripheral neuropathy really is a diagnosis of exclusion. This is what I always tell the doctors that I work with all the time. It is very important for doctors to be able to perform the most thorough evaluation possible. All records should be reviewed and evaluate to ensure that all correctible causes of peripheral neuropathy have been addressed. If a root cause can be identified, it should be addressed as completely as medically and humanly possible.

Because a diagnosis of peripheral neuropathy is more about making sure of everything that it's not, chiropractors and physical therapists who take care of peripheral neuropathy patients often also work with many physicians of other disciplines. This is to make sure that they take everything into account including genetics, family history, medication usage and many others.

We also have to be on the lookout for iatrogenically neuropathy. Here, neuropathy was caused by inadvertent adverse effects resulting from medical care such as chemotherapy for cancer or other illnesses.

Another thing that greatly concerns me is when patients choose to self-medicate using over-the-counter medications or herbal preparations without regards to the possibility that this medications may contain toxins. I strongly advice that when you start having symptoms or noticed that something is not right, that you seek professional counseling instead of doing self-medication. This is to prevent creating irreversible damage to your liver or kidneys due to the heavy metals or plant toxin in the medication that you would take.