Abstract #3739

Structural remodeling of the sciatic nerve differs between painful and painless diabetic polyneuropathy: an in vivo study using magnetic resonance neurography.

Johann Malte Enno Jende¹, Jan B Groener², Stefan Kopf², Tim Hilgenfeld¹, Sabine Heiland³, Mirko Pham⁴, Peter Nawroth², Martin Bendszus¹, and Felix Tobias Kurz¹

¹Neuroradiology, Heidelberg University Hospital, Heidelberg, Germany, ²Endocrinology, Heidelberg University Hospital, Heidelberg, Germany, ³Experimental Neuroradiology, Heidelberg University Hospital, Heidelberg, Germany, ⁴Neuroradiology, Würzburg University Hospital, Würzburg, Germany

Diabetic polyneuropathy (DN) is one of the most severe complications of diabetes. It is yet uncertain why patients either suffer from painful (PDN) or painless (NPDN) diabetic polyneuropathy. We prospectively performed magnetic resonance neurography of the sciatic nerve in 120 patients suffering from DN of varying severity and correlated the results with clinical symptoms and electrophysiological data. We found a higher load of lesions to the sciatic nerve in PDN compared to PDN (p<0.0001), extending over longer distances (p<0.0001). This indicates that proximal nerve damage is one of the main contributors to the development of PDN.

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