Applications of current perception threshold evaluations in discovering early diabetic peripheral neuropathy

Abstract

Diabetic neuropathy is one of the common long-term complications of diabetes, which occurs in the peripheral nervous system and the central nervous system, and its most common type is diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN). Diabetic peripheral neuropathy can not only cause pain, numbness and limitation of activity in limbs, but also lead to diabetic foot ulcers even amputations due to hypoesthesia and anesthesia, ultimately affects the quality of life of patients with diabetes and increases the mortality. Nearly half of patients with DPN do not have any clinical symptoms, thus the early detection and diagnosis of diabetic peripheral neuropathy are particularly critical. Current perception threshold (CPT) evaluation is considered as a mean of early detection of DPN, which gains more and more attentions because of its non-invasive feature, simple operation and high sensitivity. So far, there is scarcely any article summarizing CPT evaluations′ applications in researching the relationships between DPN and its risk factors. This review will discuss the principles and advantages of CPT evaluations, and its relationship with DPN will also be summarized as follows. Key words: Transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation; Sensory thresholds; Diabetic neuropathies; Peripheral nervous system diseases; Review