The Physiological Significance of A-Waves in Early Diabetic Neuropathy: Assessment of Motor Nerve Fibers by Neurophysiological Techniques

Objective: This study aimed to investigate how early A-waves could occur in type II diabetes, and what it implied functionally.Methods: We performed conduction velocity distribution (CVD) test in peroneal nerves of 37 type II diabetic patients with normal nerve conduction study (NCS) and 22 age-matc...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Qiong Cai, Guliqiemu Aimair, Wen-Xiao Xu, Pei-Yao Xiao, Lie-Hua Liu, Yin-Xing Liang, Chao Wu, Song-Jie Liao
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Frontiers Media S.A. 2021-01-01
Series:Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience
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Online Access:https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnsys.2021.633915/full
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Summary:Objective: This study aimed to investigate how early A-waves could occur in type II diabetes, and what it implied functionally.Methods: We performed conduction velocity distribution (CVD) test in peroneal nerves of 37 type II diabetic patients with normal nerve conduction study (NCS) and 22 age-matched controls. The electrophysiological data and clinical information were analyzed.Results: A-waves were observed in 45.9% of diabetic patients and only in 1 person in healthy controls, all detected in the tibial nerves. The diabetic patients with A-waves showed faster conduction velocity in all quartiles in the motor peroneal nerves compared to the patients without A-waves, and their CVD histograms were shifted to the right side, consisting of a significantly larger percentage of fast conducting fibers. There was no significant difference in the CVD values of the upper extremity nerves among the patients with and without A-waves and the healthy controls.Conclusion: A-waves could occur in type II diabetes as early as when NCS showed normal, and represented as a sign of neuropathy as well as a sign of rescued motor nerve function.
ISSN:1662-5137