Electrodiagnostic Patterns of Demyelination and Hughes Functional Grading in Typical Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy

Abstract

Background: Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) is characterized by progressive or relapsing motor or sensory symptoms, with variants differing in the relative distribution of these symptoms and electrophysiologic findings. We aimed to correlate the electrodiagnostic patterns of demyelination using Hughes Functional Grading Scale in patients with CIDP. Methods: A case–control study was conducted at the neurophysiology department of Al-Imamian Al-Kadhymian Medical city and Nursing Home Hospital, Medical City, Baghdad from December 2017 to June 2018. Fifteen patients with CIDP aged 30–60 years with disease duration between 6 months and 2 years and 20 age-matched healthy subjects (control group) were included in the study. The participants were submitted to medical history, clinical neurological examination, and electrophysiologic tests. Results: Patients with CIDP demonstrated prolonged distal sensory and motor latencies, decreased sensory nerve action potential amplitude, slowing of sensory and motor nerve conduction velocity, and prolonged mean F-wave latency. The majority showed absent sural sensory responses. Significant relationships were demonstrated between the Hughes Functional Grading Scale and different neurophysiologic parameters, and no correlation was found with the terminal latency index. Conclusions: Patients with high Hughes functional scoring also have severe abnormalities in motor parameters, usually in the range of demyelination. The involvement of nerve segments was multifocal affecting mostly the proximal and intermediate nerve segments; the terminal segments were involved to a lesser extent.