Non-Diabetic Neuropathy: Who is at Risk, and What Are its Effects?

For the millions of Americans who have type 2 diabetes, peripheral neuropathy is a clear and present danger. Yet diabetes is far from the only driver of peripheral nerve damage — indeed, there are more than 100 different types of peripheral neuropathy.

As our name — Neuropathy & Pain Centers of Texas — suggests, our team excels in managing and treating peripheral neuropathy of all kinds. If you consider that the human body has hundreds of different nerves, as well as billions of neurons, there’s plenty of room for non-diabetic neuropathy.

In this blog, we take a look at some common reasons why people develop peripheral neuropathy outside of diabetes and how we can help.

Common causes of non-diabetic peripheral neuropathy

Peripheral neuropathy affects about 2.4% of the general population; this number jumps to about 8% in older demographics. While diabetes is responsible for more than its fair share of the overall nerve damage burden, it’s not alone in this.

As we mentioned, there are more than 100 different roads to peripheral neuropathy, and we want to highlight just a few of the more common types, such as:

• Trauma, surgery, or injury — from fractures to deep cuts that injure nerves
• Infections, such as Lyme disease or shingles
• Medical treatments like radiation and chemotherapy
• Autoimmune conditions, such as lupus and rheumatoid arthritis
• Alcoholism
• Vitamin deficiencies, especially B vitamins
• Tumors
• Inherited conditions like Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease
• Heavy metal poisoning

Frustratingly, some peripheral neuropathy is idiopathic, which means there’s no readily identifiable cause for the nerve damage.

The impact of peripheral neuropathy

There are about as many symptoms associated with peripheral neuropathy as there are types of the condition. This is because there are different nerve categories, and your symptoms depend upon which nerves are in the line of fire.

For example, if the damage occurs in sensory nerves, you may experience symptoms like pain, as well as numbness and tingling.

Nerve damage can also impact motor function and signaling, leaving you with muscle weakness, muscle atrophy, and uncontrollable muscle movements

Lastly, peripheral neuropathy can affect autonomic nerves, which are the nerve cells and fibers that regulate functions over which we have no conscious control, such as sweating, bladder function, and blood pressure. So, when you have damage in these nerves, you can experience a wide range of symptoms that range from incontinence to excessive sweating. 

Treating your nerve damage

If you suspect that you have non-diabetic nerve damage, we want you to come see us so that we can investigate. We have many different tools for studying and imaging your nerve health, and we can perform targeted tests, such as a nerve conduction study.

If we confirm nerve damage, we focus first on relieving your symptoms, such as pain management if sensory nerves are affected. From there, we focus on the underlying cause.  Peripheral nerves can regrow, so, if we’re able to identify the root cause of the nerve damage and put a stop to it, we can improve your nerve health. 

For example, if we find a vitamin deficiency is to blame for your peripheral neuropathy, we supplement these vitamins to get your nerves back to optimal health.

Whatever is behind your peripheral neuropathy, we want you to know that you’re in very good hands with our team. To get to the bottom of your nerve issues, please call or message one of our locations in Waco, Arlington, Wichita Falls, or Fort Worth, Texas, today to schedule a consultation.