The value of nerve conduction study and F-wave latency in subclinical neuropathic type II diabetic patients

Abstract EN

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the clinical usefulness of electrophysiological indexes in detecting and preventing diabetic neuropathy, it is important to identify subclinical diabetic neuropathy with no objective clinical or electrophysiological abnormalities, in which routine nerve conduction study often fails to detect early stage of neuropathy. Two subjects groups were included in this study, patients with DM and control subjects.

The routine nerve conductive study (NCS) and F-wave were conducted in 35 patients with type II diabetes mellitus but without symptoms and signs of lesions of nervous system. Conduction velocity (SCV) and sensory amplitude (Amp) were measured for median, ulnar and sural nerves as well as distal motor latency (DML), motor conduction velocity (MCV), motor amplitude (Amp) and F-wave latency were measured for median, ulnar and tibial nerves in DM patients and their control group. Our results showed that there were significant differences between the controls and the DM group (p < 0.05).

The prolonged F-wave latency represent the main abnormalities and the involvement of the sensory fibers are more than that of the motor fibers and the affection of the lower limbs nerve are worse than that of the upper limbs in diabetic patients when compared with the control group.

The most commonly involved nerves are the sural and median nerve sensory fibers.

So in this study we concluded that F-wave can be used as a sensitive indicator for the early diagnosis of peripheral neuropathy and it can help to detect the subclincial lesions.