Subclinical peripheral nerve involvement in rheumatoid arthritis patients

Abstract EN

Objectives: To study an electrophysiological investigation to find out the incidence and patterns of peripheral nerves involvements in rheumatoid arthritis and to correlate them with disease activity.

Methodology: This study was carried out on 30 patients with rheumatoid Arthritis classified to, Group I: 15patients, (2males and 13 females, with evidence of disease activity, using disease activity score –DAS.

Group II: 15 patients, (1 male and 14 females) with evidence of clinical remission, Control group: 12 healthy normal subjects, 2 males and 10 females.

All patients undergo complete history taking, general, neurological examination, laboratory, radiological studies.

electrophysiological studies were done for patients and control group on both sides of the body .a.

motor nerve conduction studies to the following nerves (median nerve, ulnar nerve and common peroneal nerve) b.

sensory nerve conduction studies to the following nerves: (median ,ulnar and sural nerves).

Results: There was significant delay in distal motor latency (DML) and distal sensory latency (DSL) with significant reduction in motor and sensory nerve conduction velocities in patients groups more than control group and in-group I more than group II (p<0.05).

There was significant positive correlation between DML, DSL and disease activity score (DAS) in group1 (p<0.05) but insignificant in group2 (p>0, 05) and significant negative correlation between MNCV, SNCV and DAS (p>0.05).

Conclusions: Rheumatoid neuropathy predominates in patients with evidence of disease activity.

There is a positive correlation between distal latencies and disease activity score, and negative correlation between nerve conduction velocities and disease activity score.