Median neuropathy at the wrist may signal diabetic neuropathy

(HealthDay)—Median neuropathy at the wrist (MN) may be an early indicator of diabetic neuropathy, according to a study published in the November issue of the Journal of Diabetes Investigation.

Shuji Horinouchi, from the Kagoshima University Graduate School of Medicine and Dental Sciences in Japan, and colleagues examined the clinical significance of MN in patients with diabetes. One hundred eighty-seven patients with diabetes who were hospitalized for glycemic control were categorized into four groups: patients without MN or diabetic polyneuropathy (DPN; 71 patients); patients with MN but without DPN (25 patients); patients with MN and DPN (55 patients); and patients with DPN but without MN (36 patients).

The researchers found that the MN without DPN group included more patients in the early phase of diabetes (diagnosed within the past five years) and fewer patients with diabetic microangiopathy compared with the MN and DPN group. Compared to those without DPN, patients with MN and DPN had significantly lower motor and sensory nerve conduction velocities, longer F-wave latencies, and smaller sensory nerve action potentials.

"MN in patients with diabetes could be attributed to an impairment in axonal function at common entrapment sites, and could be used to identify an early manifestation of diabetic neuropathy," the authors write.