Diabetes can sometimes be a real pain. Over time, diabetes can cause damage to your nerves, resulting in a condition known as diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN), also known as diabetic nerve pain. In fact, up to half of the 18 million Americans with diabetes will develop some form of nerve damage.
If you have diabetic nerve pain, it may be hard to do simple things such as walking or putting on your shoes. Some people with diabetic nerve pain may have symptoms that include:
• Tingling in the toes, ankles and hands
• Stabbing, shooting or burning in the feet or hands that gets worse at night
• Pain when wearing shoes or standing.
If you already have nerve damage, the following steps can prevent or delay further damage and may lessen your symptoms:
• Keep your blood glucose levels in your target range. Meal planning, physical activity and medications, if needed, can all help you reach your target range.
• If you have problems, get treatment right away. Early treatment may help prevent more problems later on.
• Take good care of your feet. Check your feet every day. If your feet are less sensitive to pain, you might not notice a foot injury.
• Protect your feet. If your feet are dry, use a lotion on your skin but not between your toes, and wear shoes and socks that fit well.
• Get special shoes if needed.
• Be careful when exercising. Talk with a diabetes clinical exercise expert who can guide you.
It can also be useful to record the type of pain you're feeling, how bad the pain is when you experience it, where you're feeling pain and how long it lasts. This kind of specific information can help health care providers diagnose and treat the condition.
Also, medications are available to treat nerve pain. One such medication, Lyrica® (pregabalin) capsules C-V, can help relieve diabetic nerve pain. Developed by Pfizer, Lyrica represents an important treatment advance. It is the first treatment approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat two distinct forms of nerve pain, diabetic nerve pain and pain after shingles, a complication of shingles characterized as a constant stabbing, burning or electric shocklike sensation.
"I have had the opportunity to prescribe Lyrica for many of my diabetic patients suffering from nerve pain," said Dr. Jeff Gelblum, Senior Attending Department of Neurology physician at Mt. Sinai Medical Center in Miami. "My experience with this well-tolerated medication has been very good in helping folks who have long suffered such disabling symptoms as severe burning and tingling."
Lyrica is not for everyone. Some of the most common side effects are dizziness, sleepiness, dry mouth, swelling of the hands and feet, blurred vision, weight gain and trouble concentrating. The discontinuation rate due to side effects was low in clinical trials.
