Peripheral Nerve Dysfunction in Children and Adolescents with Insulin Dependent Diabetes Mellitus

Abstract

Diabetic neuropathy is one of the major complications of type I diabetes mellitus. In this study peripheral nerve functions in children and adolescents with type I DM were assessed in 40 patients aged 7.17 to 25.33 years having type I DM with duration more than 5 years referred to Diabetic Endocrine and Metabolic Pediatric Unit (DEMPU).

Hundred percent of patients had neuropathy of different grades as detected by conduction velocity tests, 97.5% of patients had motor neuropathy, 90% had sensory neuropathy while 92.5% had autonomic neuropathy. The degree of neuropathy was positively correlated with bad metabolic control, duration of diabetes, presence of other complications of diabetes and other host factors. To conclude, all diabetic patients either symptomatizing or not should be screened for neuropathy by neurological examination and nerve conduction study tests to detect subclinical neuropathy.