Tenth International Conference on Health, Wellness & Society

Abstract

One in every seven diabetic patients will develop some type of foot injury throughout their life. In 85% of cases, ulcerations precede amputations in the lower extremities. The risk of ulcers on the feet is three times higher in diabetic patients with polyneuropathy. Sweat glands are innervated by fibers which are damaged in early stages of diabetes, leading to hyposudoration in the lower extremities and consequent appearance of cracks that can lead to infections. To detect a decrease in sweating, there are several tests that have demonstrated reliability, highlighting Neuropad®. The fact that sudomotor dysfunction is documented in patients with glucose intolerance suggests using these tools as evidence for an initial screening. The use of Neuropad® has been compared with other tools used in screening of diabetic patients such as the Neuropathy Disability Score (NDS), Michigan Neuropathy Screening Instrument-Questionnarire (MNSI) or the Diabetic Neuropathy Index. Our aim is to assess the concordance between the alteration of the Neuropad® and the different diagnostic criteria of NP according to the different clinical guidelines. Two hundred and twenty feet were studied. We found a correct Neuropad® in 66 feet (29.73%), and pathological in 128 (57.66%). Patients without a clinical diagnosis, but with a pathological result with Neuropad® indicates agreement with other authors who have determined that one third of patients with normal neurological examinations have altered the test, suggesting that there may be a sudomotor involvement in the early stages of a neuropathy, and the Neuropad® test could be used in early detection.