I am suffering from Diabetics since 10 years.My both the legs upto knee lost senses.Feet are like wooden logs.

Question

I am aged 67 years and suffering from diabetics since 10 years.The blood sugar is under control.I am a pure vegetarian and following the diet of diabetic patients.I felt loss of senses to my right leg thumb in the year 1996.Since then slowly it has occupied my both feet and now I lost senses upto knees. I am unable to walk bare footed even on sand bed.I feel as if I am walking on thick foam bed when I walk in my home on ceramic tiled floor.I affraid to go to toilet, where my leg slips always.I cannot wash my face with soap with both hands.I feel reeling sensation in my head.So,I wash with one hand and with other hand I grip some handle tight. If it happen that I put my foot on a small particle of 2mm unconsciously, I collapse on ground.I am regularly taking diabetic medicines.One tablet Glynase before food and one tablet Glyciphage after food, three times daily.Both my legs are paining and I am unable to sleep in nights.I have attended many conferences.They said it cannot be cured.

Answer 1

Diabetic peripheral neuropathy
http://diabetes.webmd.com/tc/Diabetic-Neuropathy-Treatment-Overview
http://diabetes.webmd.com/Foot-care-for-people-with-diabetes#tp16432 (diabetic foot care)
http://www.podiatrychannel.com/diabetes/ (overview of diabetes and complications)
http://www.podiatrychannel.com/charcotfoot/ (charcot foot)
http://www.visionchannel.net/diabeticretinopathy/ (diabetic retinopathy)
http://www.neurochannel.com/neuropathy/ (neuropathy)
http://www.nephrologychannel.com/diabeticnephropathy/ (diabetic nephropathy)
http://www.healthinfochannel.com/heartdisease/ (heart disease link from podiatry channel link above)
http://millercenter.uchicago.edu/news/guideline_diabetic_neuropathy.shtml (surgical guidelines for decompression surgery for diabetic peripheral neuropathy)

Here are some books that might help
you could also get these books on ebay or amazon or a half price bookstore. (last two are very similar).
1.Oxford Handbook of Clinical Medicine
2.Handbook of Diseases (Lippencott)
3.Professional Guide to Diseases (Springhouse)


Here is an article and the link to it on peripheral neuropathy

Peripheral neuropathy
Neuropathy: Detailed Information
What is neuropathy?
Neuropathy – sometimes called peripheral neuropathy – is a condition that occurs after peripheral nerve damage. Neuropathy may affect a single nerve or several.
The nervous system is divided into central and peripheral parts:
The brain and spinal cord make up the central nervous system.
The peripheral nervous system includes the nerves that leave the brain and the nerve roots that come off the spinal cord and go to the internal organs, limbs and skin.
Diseases, injuries and toxins, such as chemotherapy, can cause neuropathy in cancer survivors. The damage may lead to changes in sensation or muscle function and can be mild or severe. Cancer survivors may experience this condition as tingling or numbness in certain areas of the body, especially the hands and feet. These sensations range from mild to painful.
Neuropathy can be an upsetting, and sometimes scary, condition for survivors. If you begin to notice symptoms, talk to your health care team immediately.

What causes neuropathy?
Neuropathy is a common disorder, affecting about 1 to 2 percent of Americans.
Some causes include:
Diabetes mellitus (sugar diabetes) – the most common cause of neuropathy in the industrialized world
Infections (such as leprosy, syphilis, HIV and some forms of hepatitis)
Nutritional deficiency (particularly of thiamine)
Inherited disorders of metabolism and other diseases passed down through families
Alcohol
Pesticides
Drugs used in cancer treatment, particularly the platinum compounds, the taxanes, the vinca alkaloids and thalidomide
Hypothyroidism
Renal failure
Extreme stress (such as the stress of living with a chronic illness)
Radiation therapy (effects may be delayed for many years)
Some cancer tumors are associated with neuropathy as a remote effect.
What are the symptoms of neuropathy?

The types and severity of neuropathy symptoms vary greatly. Determining the amount of peripheral nerve injury just by the amount of symptoms produced is difficult. Symptoms are almost always greatest at night. Common signs and symptoms of peripheral neuropathy include:
Fatigue
Weakness
Clumsiness
Loss of balance, particularly in the dark
Dizziness, especially when getting up from a bed or a chair
Numbness, especially of hands or feet
Cramps, commonly in the calf muscles
Pain, often burning or shooting in quality
Sexual dysfunction
Sensitivity to temperature
Muscle wasting in the hands and feet
Loss of reflexes
Smooth, dry and red skin of hands and feet

Which cancer survivors are at risk?
Neuropathy can affect almost any cancer survivor, but the following are high-risk conditions.
Cancer types
Lung
Breast
Ovarian
Prostate
Myeloma
Lymphoma and Hodgkin’s disease
Testicular
Having one or more of the following characteristics may increase the chances of developing neuropathy.
Advanced age
A family history of neuropathy (familial, diabetes)
Malnourishment
Excessive use of alcohol
Some medications, including chemotherapy medications, also increase risk. Discuss your medication-related risk with your health care team.

Chemotherapy medications that increase your neuropathy risk include:
Platinum
Taxanes
Vinca alkaloids
Thalidomide
Cytosine arabinoside
Misonidazole
Interferon
Can a survivor experience neuropathy during, immediately after and/or years after treatment?
Neuropathy related to cancer may develop in the course of treatment (such as with vinca alkaloids) or shortly after. More often, neuropathy has a delayed onset, with symptoms developing weeks or months after therapy has ended. Nerve injury from radiation therapy may be quite delayed, with symptoms occurring in some instances years after treatment.
Peripheral neuropathy symptoms are often ignored by both patients and health care professionals and frequently are not recognized as being related to peripheral nerve damage. For lung cancer, neuropathy may be the earliest sign of the cancer. Report any symptoms to your health care team right away.
Can neuropathy be cured?
The peripheral nerves have a great ability to heal. Even though it may take months, most patients recover. However, in some situations, neuropathy is difficult to cure. Nerve injury caused by radiation often does not recover well. Neuropathy caused by platinum chemotherapy is also difficult to cure — recovery may take 18 months to five years or longer. During recovery of platinum-induced neuropathy, patients may suffer increased symptoms. Unfortunately, some patients with platinum neuropathy never recover.
Even if your neuropathy cannot be cured, you may benefit from treatments to relieve your symptoms and from rehabilitation designed to help you maintain your physical abilities.
What are the treatments for neuropathy?
The treatment for peripheral neuropathy depends on the cause.
Recovery can be helped by:
Adequate nutrition (foods rich in thiamine, protein and antioxidants)
Controlling and correcting contributing conditions such as diabetes or hypothyroidism
Pain medications
Physical therapy
Medications being researched in clinical trials show promise in helping peripheral nerves to heal.
How will a cancer survivor’s life change if s/he has neuropathy?
Pain and other symptoms of neuropathy can be mild or severe. Each survivor’s experience will be different. However, with appropriate treatment, the effects of neuropathy can be limited. Medications, lifestyle changes, rehabilitation and other treatments can be used.
Neuropathy can make standing for long periods or walking without assistance difficult.
Balance can be affected, increasing the risk of falling.
Activities like buttoning and tying laces or ties can be difficult.
Survivors may be sensitive to heat or cold. Survivors with this sensitivity should avoid extreme temperatures if possible and use protective clothing and hats when needed.
Neuropathy may cause a lack of pain sensation. Survivors should pay careful attention to the skin on their hands and feet because they could receive a wound or a break in the skin and not feel it.
If neuropathy affects your ability to feel the foot pedals of your car, you should not drive unless your car is adapted for hand controls. Neuropathy can slow your reaction time in moving your foot from the accelerator to the break pedal and may cause an accident. Losing your ability to drive is upsetting. You may feel you are losing your independence. However, consider the increased risk to your safety and to the safety of others on the road. Talk to your health care team about your symptoms.
Physical and occupational therapists can provide suggestions and special equipment to make daily tasks safe and easier to manage. The suggestions may include night-lights, grab bars and other home safety measures to help reduce the risk of falling. Therapists can assist survivors with physical exercises that can help them maintain physical abilities.
Pain from neuropathy can greatly affect your daily activities and quality of life. For some, the pain and changes required to manage it can lead to physical and mental stress. Watch for signs of depression and talk to your health care team or a mental health care professional about managing your feelings.
Good communication with your health care team about your symptoms and the changes they are bringing to your life is important. The team can help you manage these changes and provide referrals to other helpful resources.
http://www.livestrong.org/site/c.jvKZLbMRIsG/b.670193/k.4151/Neuropathy_Detailed_Information.htm

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Sometimes the docs give Neurontin or Lyrica or Cymbalta....

Answer 2

I do feel sorry for your condition and understand how distressing as well as trying this condition is for you.

There are some issues which I an worried and confused about. You have not stated if a physician is treating you.

I am a bit concerned that despite such an advanced disease you physician is still using only tablets and not insulin injections. You say that you blood sugars are under control: Have you had your sugar levels tested regularly and at different labs.

Obviously Diabetes for 10 years is a devastating disease. The main issues that you have described relate to the toxic nature of excess sugar on the nerves carrcying sensation to your hands and legs.

I would recommend that you seea endocrinologist or physician who specialises in diabetes. You must get instruction on proper foot care:

Do not walk bare foot
Wear diabetic foot wear
Examine your feet daily for cuts, wounds, glass or thorns
Cut you nails regularly and carefully
Keep the bathroom door unlocked
Install a chair in the bathroom and sit at all times
Preferably have someone at hand for help
Do not handle hot pans and be careful in the kitchen
Consult a reputable doctor in a good hospital
Regular check ups or blood sugar, eyes and kidney
Please enquire as to why you are still on oral tablets and not insulin injections. If they are not required then thats ok. But if they are indicated and not used then it can result in severe damage and even death.

I have used basic grammer and a simplistic approach to answer a question that has not been asked. Hence there may be some issues which may need more clarification and Im sure that a reputable doctor will be able to do this.

Hope this helps

Answer 3

1

Answer 4

Shocking New Diabetes Research Revealed : http://Diabetes.neatprim.com

Answer 5

Doctors Reverse Diabetes Without Drugs : http://Help.DiabetesGoGo.com

Answer 6

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