Prevalence of peripheral neuropathy with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus

Abstract

Insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) is rare in Chinese children. There have been no reports on the prevalence of peripheral neuropathy in Chinese children with IDDM. This study aimed to determine prevalence of subclinical peripheral neuropathy in Chinese children with IDDM. Motor and sensory nerve conduction studies of both median, ulnar, peroneal, and tibial (motor nerves) and median, ulnar, and sural (sensory nerves) were performed in 38 children with IDDM (18 males, 20 females). The age was 4-21 years (mean = 12.7 years; median = 12 years, 6 months). The duration of diabetes was less than 5 years in 15, 5-10 years in 14, and more than 10 years in nine. Neurophysiologic evidence of subclinical peripheral neuropathy was present in 26 patients (68.4%) of which motor, sensory, or motor and sensory involvement was 26 (68.4%), eight (21.1%), and 26 (68.4%), respectively. Twelve (31.6%) and 14 (36.8%) children had mild and moderate degrees of peripheral neuropathy, respectively. Among the 26 children with abnormal nerve-conduction studies, two (7.7%) had symptoms of numbness and pain in the lower limbs. Thus, two children had symptomatic neuropathy and most (n = 24) had asymptomatic peripheral neuropathy. Two children had systemic hypertension, and one (3.8%) had laboratory evidence of early renal complications. Analysis of demographic and laboratory risk factors for the development of subclinical peripheral neuropathy revealed that the age of onset, duration of diabetes, level of hemoglobin A1c, triglyceride, cholesterol, serum creatinine, and urea, microalbumin/creatinine ratio, and urinary microalbumin excretion rate were significantly related to the development of subclinical peripheral neuropathy in specific nerves.