Content
- How Can We Treat Alcoholic Peripheral Neuropathy?
- Effects due to nutritional deficiency
- Alcoholic Peripheral Neuropathy – Symptoms, Causes, Diagnosis and Treatment
- Involvement of the sympatho-adrenal and hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis in alcoholic peripheral neuropathy
- How Does Alcoholic Neuropathy Work?
Sometimes this takes the form of over-the-counter pain medication. But doctors can also prescribe creams, anticonvulsants, gabapentin, and tramadol for pain. One of the most common issues for people with alcoholic neuropathy is issues with muscle control and balance.
Physical therapy is beneficial for strength training of weakened muscles, as well as for gait and balance training. As a result of nutritional deficiency in those with alcoholic polyneuropathy, low thiamine levels are usually present and have been proposed as a cause of the nerve destruction. The general cause of this disease appears to be prolonged and heavy consumption of alcohol accompanied by a nutritional deficiency.
How Can We Treat Alcoholic Peripheral Neuropathy?
Many medications can treat peripheral nervous system problems. These can come in many forms, including injections, pills you take by mouth, patches that stick to your skin, slow-release medication and more. It is a must to consult your physician before taking any such supplements. Cessation of drinking to prevent worsening of the neuropathy . Once you’ve started to recover, you can have a loved one or caretaker help you with tasks, such as adjusting to a cane, walker or wheelchair. They can also help you perform daily tasks safely, such as testing bath water temperature with gloves to prevent skin irritation.
- Alcoholic neuropathy can also weaken the autonomic nerves which impair the bladder function and bowel.
- Moreover, phosphorylated PKC was significantly increased in the spinal cord following chronic ethanol consumption.
- Your doctor might also recommend you start taking vitamin supplements to help replace the lost vitamins from alcohol consumption.
- This involves placing electrodes on the skin, which are used to measure the speed and strength of a person’s nerve signals.
- Kim HK, Park SK, Zhou JL, Taglialatela G, Chung K, Coggeshall RE, Chung JM. Reactive oxygen species play an important role in a rat model of neuropathic pain.
- Once your doctor has diagnosed you with alcoholic neuropathy, they can recommend a treatment plan.
Total recorded alcohol consumption per capita of individuals 15 years or older, in liters of pure alcohol. To best manage symptoms, refraining from consuming alcohol is essential.
Effects due to nutritional deficiency
The demyelination is explained as the result of a slowing down of axoplasmic flow and a degradation of the quality of biological properties of axonal enzymes and proteins. This type of degeneration, so called ‘dying-back’, resembles Wallerian degeneration. Ethanol and its toxic degradation metabolites affect neuronal metabolism including the metabolic pathways of nucleus, lysosomes, peroxisomes, endoplasmatic reticulum and cytoplasm . Alcohol enters the blood as early as 5 min after ingestion and its absorption peaks after 30–90 min.
Individuals also may experience muscle wasting and decreased or absent deep tendon reflexes. Some people may experience frequent falls and gait unsteadiness due to ataxia. This ataxia may be caused by cerebellar degeneration, sensory ataxia, or distal muscle weakness. Over time, alcoholic polyneuropathy may also cause difficulty swallowing , speech impairment , muscle spasms, and muscle atrophy. There are no medications that can help improve loss of sensation, strengthen the muscle weakness, or aid the coordination and balance problems caused by alcoholic neuropathy.
Alcoholic Peripheral Neuropathy – Symptoms, Causes, Diagnosis and Treatment
Some of the options treat the alcoholic neuropathy recovery time of alcoholic neuropathy. It is important to note that doctors will recommend different combinations of treatment options for different people. These supplements can give a person’s body the resources that it needs to repair damage to nerves. Since alcohol prevents the body from absorbing certain nutrients, this can only work if someone stops drinking.
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