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Frequently Asked Questions:

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What is neuropathy?

Neuropathy is a term for pain and other uncomfortable sensations that result from damage to your nerves or nerve dysfunction. It affects your peripheral nerves, which relay sensory information from all parts of your body to your central nervous system or CNS (brain and spinal cord).

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When peripheral nerve signals reach your brain, you feel pain as a warning to take action to stop or prevent tissue damage. Peripheral nerves also alert you to temperature changes and feelings of tickling or irritation on your skin.

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If you have neuropathy, rather than sending you important information about tissue damage and temperature, the nerves are signaling they’re damaged or not functioning properly.

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Sometimes this is due to nerve damage or diseases that affect your nerves, but it could also be due to some kind of flaw in the way the nerves are working that makes them transmit pain signals when there's no identifiable cause. That is known as idiopathic neuropathy.

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What symptoms does neuropathy cause?

Neuropathy symptoms vary depending on the affected nerves. Pain is very often the most obvious symptom of neuropathy, but other sensations you might experience include:

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• Burning

• Prickling

• Tingling

• Pins-and-needles

• Numbness

 

You might find you become extremely sensitive, so even the gentlest touch causes pain, or what should cause minimal discomfort becomes intensely painful.

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Why might I get neuropathy?

Neuropathy can develop for many reasons. It can be a symptom of diseases such as:

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• Diabetes (diabetic peripheral neuropathy)

• Lupus

• Post-herpetic neuralgia

• Trigeminal neuralgia

• Celiac disease

• Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease

• Guillain-Barré syndrome

• Hormonal disorders

• Kidney failure

• HIV-associated peripheral sensory neuropathy

 

Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy can be a problem for cancer patients, and neuropathy sometimes develops after you've had other types of serious illnesses, like pneumonia. Other possible causes include nutrient deficiencies and poisoning.

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What treatments can help with neuropathy?

If the cause of your neuropathy is detectable (for example, you have diabetic peripheral neuropathy or post-herpetic neuralgia), it's important to treat these underlying causes to help reduce the nerve damage.

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Other treatments Dr. Graf uses that might alleviate the symptoms of neuropathy include:

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• Physical therapy

• Therapeutic massage

• Lifestyle changes

• Acupuncture

• Yoga and Pilates

• Medications

• Orthobiologic medicine

• Injections

• Spinal cord stimulator

 

Dr. Graf offers orthobiologic medicine treatments like platelet-rich plasma (PRP), stem cell therapy, and A2M (alpha-2-macroglobulin) injections. Regenerative medicine products consist of growth factors and human cells that encourage your tissues to heal. They could help damaged nerves to repair themselves or regenerate.

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Some patients with neuropathy might require more invasive treatments, such as epidural steroid, facet joint, or nerve block injections. If no other methods are working, Dr. Graf can offer spinal cord and peripheral nerve stimulator implantation.

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If neuropathy affects your enjoyment of life, call Intelligent Pain & Regenerative Medicine Solutions today or request an appointment online.

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