Neuropathy

Type 1 and LADA
1

I have never been diagnosed with this, but this post on my FB page is making me think....

PERIPHERAL NEUROPATHY WARNING:

Naperville, IL—The most common method your doctor will recommend to treat your neuropathy is with prescription drugs that may temporarily reduce your symptoms. These drugs have names such as Gabapentin, Lyrica, Cymbalta, and Neurontin, and are primarily antidepressant or anti-seizure drugs. These drugs may cause you to feel uncomfortable and have a variety of harmful side effects.

Peripheral neuropathy is a result of damage to the nerves often causing weakness, pain, numbness, tingling, and the most debilitating balance problems. This damage is commonly caused by a lack of blood flow to the nerves in the hands and feet which causes the nerves to begin to degenerate due to lack of nutrient flow.

As the blood vessels that surround the nerves become diseased they shrivel up which causes the nerves to not get the nutrients to continue to survive. When these nerves begin to “die” they cause you to have balance problems, pain, numbness, tingling, burning, and many additional symptoms.

The main problem is that your doctor has told you to just live with the problem or try the drugs which you don’t like taking because they make you feel uncomfortable. There is now a facility right here in Naperville that offers you hope without taking those endless drugs with serious side effects. (see the special neuropathy severity examination at the end of this article)

In order to effectively treat your neuropathy three factors must be determined.

1) What is the underlying cause?
2) How Much Nerve Damage Has Been Sustained. NOTE: Once you have sustained 85% nerve loss, there is likely nothing that we can do for you.
3) How much treatment will your condition require?

The treatment that is provided at the Neuroplus Institute has three main goals:

1) Increase blood flow
2) Stimulate small fiber nerves
3) Decrease brain-based pain

The treatment to increase blood flow utilizes a specialized MLS Laser Therapy (there is no pain or side-effects) using this advanced powerful technology. This technology was originally developed by NASA to assist in increasing blood flow.

The MLS Laser Therapy is like watering a plant. The light therapy will allow the blood vessels to grow back around the peripheral nerves and provide them with the proper nutrients to heal and repair.

It’s like adding water to a plant and seeing the roots grow deeper and deeper.

The amount of treatment needed to allow the nerves to fully recover varies from person to person and can only be determined after a detailed neurological and vascular evaluation. As long as you have not sustained at least 85% nerve damage there is hope!

Dr. Joseph Serpe, DC at the Neuroplus Institute will do a neuropathy severity examination to determine the extent of the nerve damage for only $60. This neuropathy severity examination will consist of a detailed history review & sensory evaluation, peripheral vascular testing, and a detailed analysis of the findings of your neuropathy.

Dr. Serpe will be offering this neuropathy severity examination from now until Wednesday, November 26, 2014.

Call 630-689-9568 to make an appointment with Dr. Serpe to determine if your peripheral neuropathy can be treated.

Most major health insurances are accepted including BCBS, Aetna, UHC and Medicare.

NOTE: Neuroplus Institute 651 Amersale Drive, Suite 109, Naperville, IL 60563. Conveniently located one block west of Route 59 on North Aurora Road.

The patient is encouraged to bring their spouse or significant other to the case review and examination in order to have an extra set of "eyes and ears." We also suggest you bring any diagnostic imaging reports, blood work results (within the past year) and nerve

2

After looking at his website (he has an interestingly wide collection of specialty areas for a Chiropractor.) I'd have to say Snake Oil.

But I'm just a pessimists (realist), so don't mind me.

3

I thought peripheral neuropathy was caused by directly toxicity of high blood sugar on nerves.

Considering that even with total normalization of blood sugars nerves will take 6 - 12 months to recover, I wonder how they can even measure their success.

But they are claiming insurance is accepted.... interesting....

4

Most folks I know who have done this procedure report good outcomes. This has been around for many years and is FDA approved for the treatment of neuropathy. I have not done the treatment largely because it has never been covered by my insurance, and the local cost is much more than $200+. Also the treatment is ongoing. That is one must have the treatment often in order to sustain the effectiveness. If the cost of treatment were $60 then yes I would try it.

5

Looks like a quack peddling some treatments with an element of "truthiness". As Rick points out, some of this stuff (laser, etc.) is established with clinical outcomes.

On the other hand, looking at his site there's all sorts of complete claptrap common to many chiros (finding a medically legitimate chiro can be a real challenge -- one of the best tests is to ask them about "humors" and how their "flow" in the body affects illness and pain; if they even seem to know what you're talking about, run for the door).

The most promising research I've come across regarding the cause of PN involved a theory about mitochondrial damage in neurons due to high sugars; peripheral nerves take a long time to heal (if they're going to) when sugars are normalized and kep there because of the length of the nerve fiber from cell body to end -- a sensory nerve in your finger has a cell body in your spin, and a long dendrite that stretches from there all the way to your finger.

That entire fiber is filled with thousands of mitochondria, which originate in the cell body, and then migrate down the nerve fiber. This can take as long as a year to get all the way to the end for a very long nerve.

So, when sugars are normalized, and healthy mitos are being generated in the cell body, it takes time to replace the bad ones downstream.

I read a very good paper on this not long ago... I'll try to find it on line and post a link.

In any case, this is theory at this point, not anything that has stood up to rigorous experimentation or multiple controlled study. However, it's consistent with the symptoms and behavior of the disease, and there is some experimental evidence in support of it.

6

Dave, I think you hit the nail on the head. We forget sometimes that Chiropractors are doctors in a broad sense. Just like I am a doctor (education) but of course I knwo little about medicine and do not practice it.

The favorable outcomes I have heard of are always done by MD's or DO's and like I said involve multiple trips in order to sustain improvement. Still, my poor mom suffered terribly from neuropathy and had this been available in any context, she would have done it. Blind studies done or not when one has this and it is fully developed I suspect any treatment hope is welcome.

7

You are pretty much right on Dave. I believe the report you reference is from Johns Hopkins and it actually states that it takes two years for the midochondria to migrate to your fingers and toes. Body hieght and age play aa big part in the timing. The damage is to the fatty lining around the nerves (the insulation on the wire) And yes, it is from the high blood sugar that erodes this lining causing signals to misfire creating pain and numbness.

I can tell you from my own experience that this is pretty damned accurate, and my doctors agree. My P/N is much improved. It took a solid 18 months to BEGIN to feel some improvement and another 8 to see real day to day lasting improvement. The only thing I take to assist the process is alpha lipoic acid (r-ala). I used asprin and marijuana to get physical relief. I have become absolute in my diet to control my BG. Since Feb of 2011 my highest A1c has been 5.7 and my average is under 5.5. I am T1 and maintain this control by following a routine that causes me to use the least amount of insulin each time II eat. I have gone as long as two weeks using only my basal.

The laser therapy is real. I have tried it and was quite surprised at how well it seemed to work. But you don't have to pay for office visits to do this. There is a device that some insurances will pay for that you can use at home. I'm still debating if I want to spend the $300 it costs. I'm not too sure that the program mentioned in this post is altogether valid, but that part of it is at least a helpful, if overpriced, procedure.

In any case, healing neuropathy is a long and slow process that requires a
HIGH level of committment and attention not to mention patience. I have worked my ■■■ off for the last four years and been highly succesful at reversing som e pretty severe complications. That being said, all of them, including my P/N have a huge impact on my life. Every hour of every day.

8

My personal experience has been similar to yours, Randy, and consistent with that Johns Hopkins study.

I presented with completely out of control diabetes a year and a half ago, a1c 11%. Had various symptoms of PN in hands and feet.

Went all Navy SEAL on the D, got it under control with insulin in 3 weeks (that was a rough ride!). Been tight controlling ever since, last a1c was 5.8.

Like you, it took a long time for the PN to start to resolve. For me it was about 6-8 months before I saw some improvement, about double that for as much healing as was going to happen (which was a lot). My PN is gone now, although I do have some residual minor loss of sensitivity in a few of my fingers.

9

I agree on the rough ride. Navy seal is a good description. Mine was a "hair on fire" experience. From Oct to Feb I went from A1c @ 12.3 to 5.6. I had no idea what I was doing, but normalizing BG was the ONLY hope I was given to stop the progression. NONE of my doctors would offer ANY hope of healing.

NONE of my complications are gone. They are all MUCH better than they were, but they are with me every moment of every day. They do keep improving though, very incrementally, but they do improve. If I have as much improvement in the next four years they will still be with me, but I will be very happy with the progress.

10

How's the vision doing, Randy, and what's the outlook going forward?

Man, that's the one thing I hope more than anything will improve for you.

RE: not healing completely -- me too. Like I said, the PN is MUCH better, but it's still there "a bit", I have occasional evening when the needle tingly pain -- mildly so -- flares up for no apparent reason, and I treat it much the same as you do -- I have a prescription here in CA :-)

11

Thanks Dave. After spending the last several months at something like 20:1200 due mostly to cataracts I finally had them removed this summer (end of Aug) and I'm back to something over 20:200. Still legally blind but much better funtionally. My eyesight is now pretty much as good as it will get. I will probably see som e small and gradual improvement in the future, but most likely will always be legally blind. Based on the prognosis I started with I am actually very happy with this result.

Now for the ears. I have significant hearing loss in both ears. Not all of this is from D, but a lot of the worst is nerve damage which is from D. I just started working with the state Dept of Voc Rehab (DVR) to asses my needs and abilities to re enter the workplace. The first styep is apparently to get me hearing aids which will be a wonderful thing.

As for the numbness, it is withme 24/7 365. The pain is here and ther. Usually at a low level and isolated. I do have flare ups that can last a few minutes or a few days. I have foumd though, that these flare ups preceed some improvement. Never huge though. Just enough improvement in motion orcontrol that I can recognize it.

12

Thanks for all of your input