Possible Mechanism of The Preventive Effect of Pentoxifylline on The Development of Diabetic Neuropathic Pain in Rats

Abstract

Diabetic neuropathy is a serious complication of diabetes. It severely impairs the quality of life. It has a lifetime prevalence of about 50%of patient with diabetes. About 20 to 30% of patients with DN suffer from neuropathic pain. The pathogenesis of DNP is not yet been fully identified. A better understanding of the mechanisms underlying diabetic neuropathic pain will contribute to the search of new therapies. There are two directions for the treatment of diabetic neuropathy, one for the symptomatic another for fundamental treatment, which may not be effective to relieve the symptoms but able to inhibit the progression of the disease. Activation of spinal microglia has been demonstrated in STZ treated animals, that activated microglia might have the main role in sensitization of nociceptive neurons in the spinal cord. PTX is one of the glial inhibitors that inhibit secretion of proinflammatory cytokines. Accordingly, this study was designed to investigate the role of early and late treatment of pentoxifylline (PTX) in management of diabetic neuropathic pain (DNP). Method