Neuropathy is a term used for symptoms of disorders or diseases of the nerves in the body. Symptoms can include pain, tingling, muscle cramps, and difficulty urinating.
The causes of neuropathy vary, can be an injury or certain diseases, such as diabetes. This disorder can also occur from birth. Therefore, treatment for neuropathy will also be tailored to the cause.
Symptoms of Neuropathy
Symptoms of neuropathy vary, depending on the type, amount, and area of nerves affected. Neuropathy consists of several types, including mononeuropathy (disorder of one nerve), mononeuritis multiple (disorder of two or more nerves in different areas), and polyneuropathy (disorder of many nerves).
The following are the symptoms of neuropathy that appear based on the type of nerve that is affected:
Sensory symptoms
Sensory symptoms appear in the sensory nerves that function as the sense of touch in the body. Symptoms of neuropathy that appear on the sensory nerves include:
- tingling.
- Numbness, especially in the hands and feet.
- Changes in taste sensors, such as severe pain felt.
- Feel the burning sensation.
- It feels like you are wearing socks or gloves.
- Loss of body coordination ability.
- Loss of body reflexes.
Motor symptoms
Motor symptoms appear in the motor nerves in the body that function to regulate muscle movement. Motor symptoms consist of:
- Muscles feel weak
- Muscle twitch
- Muscle cramp
- Spasm or muscle tension
- Difficulty walking or moving hands or feet
- Loss of muscle control
- Unable to move certain body parts
Autonomic symptoms
Autonomic symptoms occur in the autonomic nerves that function to regulate functions in the body, such as blood pressure, heart rate, to the digestive system. Symptoms that appear are:
- Abnormal blood pressure or heart rate
- Dizziness when standing or fainting
- Decreased amount of sweat
- Nausea or vomiting
- Indigestion
- Difficult to urinate
- Sexual dysfunction
- Weight loss
Autonomic neuropathy
Conditions that arise as a result of damage to the involuntary nervous system. This nervous system controls heart rate, blood circulation, digestive system, sexual response, sweating, and bladder function. Symptoms of autonomic neuropathy include:
- Especially at night will experience constipation or diarrhea.
- Low blood pressure or hypotension.
- Feeling nauseous, bloated, and often burping.
- Disorders of sexual response, eg erectile dysfunction.
- Fast heartbeat or tachycardia.
- Difficulty swallowing.
- Fecal incontinence.
- Low blood sugar (hypoglycemia).
- Difficulty urinating.
- Excessive sweating.
When to go to the doctor
If you feel the early symptoms of neuropathy, such as tingling and weakness in the arms or legs, consult a doctor immediately. Examination by a doctor needs to be done so that the condition experienced can be treated immediately and the risk of further damage to the nerves can be prevented.
One of the most common types of neuropathy is diabetic neuropathy, which is a disorder or nerve damage caused by diabetes. If you suffer from diabetes, try to always check with your doctor regularly to prevent complications.
Seek immediate medical attention if you develop symptoms of neuropathy after an injury, even a minor one. This is because the trauma that occurs can cause severe damage or disruption to the nerves.
The initial symptoms of a stroke are similar to the symptoms of neuropathy, including feeling weak in certain body parts, falling due to difficulty maintaining balance. However, these symptoms appear suddenly and not gradually like the symptoms of neuropathy. Therefore, immediately go to the ER if these symptoms appear suddenly.
Causes of Neuropathy
The causes of neuropathy vary, depending on the type of neuropathy and the location of the nerve being affected. Here's the explanation:
Peripheral neuropathy
Peripheral neuropathy is a condition that occurs due to disruption or damage to nerves outside the brain and spinal cord. There are several conditions that can cause peripheral neuropathy, including:
- Diabetes.
- Injury or pressure on a nerve from a fall, accident, or movement
- Lack of vitamin B1, vitamin B3, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, and vitamin E.
- Autoimmune diseases, such as lupus, Guillain-Barre syndrome, Sjogren's syndrome, vasculitis, and rheumatoid arthritis.
- Viral and bacterial infections, such as hepatitis B and hepatitis C, HIV, Lyme disease, herpes zoster, Epstein-Barr virus, leprosy, and diphtheria.
- Tumors or cancers, such as lymphoma and multiple myeloma.
Cranial Neuropathy
Cranial neuropathy occurs due to disruption or damage to one of the 12 cranial nerves, namely nerves close to the brain and located in the head. Following are the causes of cranial neuropathy:
- Increased pressure in the brain
- Infection
- Cancer
- Congenital
- Blood vessel disorders
- Autoimmune disease
Neuropathy Diagnosis
Neuropathy examination depends on the symptoms experienced. Therefore, the doctor will start the examination by asking for a medical history which includes symptoms, family medical history, including daily lifestyle.
The doctor will also perform a neurological exam to check muscle reflexes, muscle strength, sense of touch, and posture and body coordination. There are several investigations that may be performed to support the diagnosis, including:
- Blood tests, to look for disorders in the body, such as vitamin deficiencies, diabetes, and immune function disorders.
- Scans with X-rays, CT scans, or MRIs, to look for damaged nerves and look for abnormalities, such as tumors or hernias.
- Examination of nerve function with electromyography (EMG), to measure nerve function.
- Nerve conduction velocity (NCV) test, to measure the speed at which signals flow through nerves.
- Nerve biopsy, to look for abnormalities that occur in nerve cells.
- Lumbar puncture, to detect the cause of neuropathy caused by Guillain-Barre syndrome or infection.
Neuropathy Treatment
Neuropathy treatment is determined based on the underlying disease or condition. For example, diabetic neuropathy is treated with medications to control diabetes, while neuropathy due to vitamin B12 deficiency is treated with vitamin B12 supplements.
Some methods of treatment that can be done by doctors are:
Drugs
The neurologist will also give a combination of several drugs to relieve the symptoms of neuropathy, including:
- Painkillers that are applied topically.
- Antidepressant medications, such as amitriptyline, doxepin, and nortriptyline.
- Opioids, such as tramadol.
- Anticonvulsant (anti-seizure) drugs, such as gabapentin and pregabalin.
Special medical procedures
In addition to medication, neuropathy can also be treated with the following procedures:
- Physiotherapy, to improve the ability of nerves to move.
- Occupational therapy, to be able to adapt to daily activities.
- Therapy transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS), to stimulate the nervous system by using electrical energy.
- Exchange of blood plasma to reduce the overreaction of the immune system in the body.
If the neuropathy is caused by compression or compression of the nerves, it can be treated through a surgical procedure. In addition, neuropathy may also be treated with acupuncture methods by an acupuncturist.
Healthy lifestyles
To maximize treatment, sufferers can also adopt a healthy lifestyle, such as exercising regularly to increase muscle strength, eating nutritious foods to prevent nutritional and vitamin deficiencies, and quitting smoking.
Although many cases of neuropathy do not go away completely and have the possibility of recurrence, proper treatment can help relieve and control symptoms so that they do not recur.
Neuropathy Complications
Complications of neuropathy depend on the underlying cause. Diabetic neuropathy, which causes sufferers to experience numbness, is at risk of causing diabetic sores on the feet to be neglected. Over time, these wounds become ulcers and result in tissue death, which requires amputation.
Neuropathy due to Guillain-Barre syndrome can cause the sufferer to experience permanent paralysis.
Neuropathy Prevention
Preventive measures against neuropathy also depend on the underlying disease or condition. To prevent diabetic neuropathy, it is necessary to prevent diabetes itself.
Some healthy lifestyles that can be done include:
- Increase consumption of healthy foods, such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and foods high in protein.
- Exercise regularly, at least 5 times a week for 30 minutes to strengthen the muscles of the body.
Use personal protective equipment at work to prevent neuropathy from repetitive motion at work.