How to prevent and treat diabetic peripheral neuropathy?

Diabetic peripheral neuropathy is serious and prevention is key

Data show that diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) is the leading cause of lower limb amputation in patients with diabetes, accounting for approximately 60% of non-traumatic lower limb amputations. In addition, in addition to prominent symptoms such as muscle numbness and abnormal sensory function in patients with DPN, the motor instability caused by DPN has attracted more and more attention from experts in recent years. Movement instability increases the risk of falls in patients, with patients with DPN having a three-fold increased risk of falls compared with diabetic patients without neuropathy.

Various metabolic changes and vascular factors play a very important role in the pathogenesis of diabetic neuropathy. Among them, hyperglycemia is the main risk factor for the progression of DPN (other risk factors include dyslipidemia, hypertension, duration of diabetes, age, male gender, smoking, drinking, etc.).

DPN is seriously harmful and complex to treat, so prevention is extremely important. Diabetic patients must pay attention to foot care in their daily lives. This includes washing your feet with warm water every day. The water temperature should not exceed 37°C. Do not test the water temperature with your feet. After washing, use a soft light-colored towel to dry the moisture between the toes, and check for bleeding and exudation to keep the between toes dry. Use skin care ointment or cream to keep your skin moist, and do not apply cream between your toes or on ulcers.

People with chapped skin can use special chapped cream containing urea. You should also pay attention when cutting your toenails. You should cut them straight to avoid cutting the edges too deeply. Comfortable footwear and socks should be chosen. Socks should be cotton and wool socks with good water absorption and breathability. They should be light in color and suitable in size. The sock opening should not be too tight, and the internal seams should be flat and not too rough. Shoes should have wide and deep toes, thick and soft ones. Sole, low rise, smooth lining. Shoes should be bought in the afternoon and both feet should be tried on at the same time. It is best to start wearing new shoes for 1 to 2 hours a day and gradually increase the time you wear them. Before wearing shoes, you should check and remove foreign matter in the shoes. Do not wear sandals with open toes and do not wear barefoot shoes.

Pay attention to staying away from dangerous factors every day, such as not getting too close to heat sources such as heaters; not using hot water bottles, electric heaters and electric blankets; and not walking barefoot, especially on hot sand or cement.

In addition to doing the above daily care to prevent diabetic peripheral neuropathy, diabetic patients can also appropriately take some Chinese patent medicines that have the effect of activating blood circulation and removing blood clots and specifically targeting diabetic peripheral neuropathy, so as to prevent the disease before it occurs.