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If you’re concerned about the effects or possibility of developing alcoholic neuropathy, then you may want to seek the assistance of a clinical professional in diagnosing and offering treatment options for you. Alcoholic neuropathy is a serious issue that can last for a lifetime if not properly identified and treated at an early stage. At Landmark Recovery, we pride ourselves on offering leading, evidence-based treatment for those suffering from any kind of substance use disorder.

• 87 articles were included in this review, 29 case–control studies, 52 prospective/retrospective cohort studies and 2 randomised control trials, 1 cross sectional study, and 3 population-based studies.
• Others may be able to stop drinking with outpatient therapy or social support.
• Both the toxicity of alcohol and nutritional deficiencies in those who drink heavily have been linked with nerve pain in alcoholic neuropathy.
• Distribution of the severity of polyneuropathy according to the different types of alcohol consumed.

The present study sample comprised subjects who volunteered to be admitted to our department for detoxification. Prior to admission, all subjects attended a preliminary interview with a physician and/or psychologist aimed at evaluating not only physical status, but also their determination to break an often long-standing dependency. Because of the known characteristics of alcoholics, we were unable to ascertain https://ecosoberhouse.com/article/alcohol-neuropathy-symptoms-and-treatment/ their exact daily alcohol intake. However, reliable information indicated that all subjects consumed at least 100 g of alcohol per day. Most of our subjects were aged from 35 to 55 years and therefore of working age. The marked prevalence of males in our sample (70.6 vs 29.4%) agrees with epidemiological studies indicating that alcoholism prevails in men (Indagine Nazionale DOXA, 1998; GESIA, 1999).

How does alcohol cause neuropathy?

Because this chronic condition affects the brain and nerves, pain can be intense, constant, sharp, quick, dull, and prolonged, and cramping may occur in muscles without warning. Another theory is that oxidative stress and increased free radical activity is the primary contributing factor when it comes to alcoholic neuropathy. Free radicals are unstable molecules with versatile structures, allowing them to initiate long-chain chemical reactions with a plethora of other molecules, causing cellular damage in the process. For the most part this review consists of non-interventional studies for which generally accepted tools to evaluate risk of bias are not available. To assess the bias in these we applied the Jadad score which takes into consideration quality of randomisation and blinding as well as reporting of withdrawals to assess bias in RCTs [9].

Walking becomes increasingly problematic because of the weakness of the distal muscles and manual dexterity is progressively reduced due to the combination of muscle weakness, sensory loss and ataxia. Clinical examination reveals signs of symmetric and distal sensory motor and autonomic loss. Sensory loss tends to begin with a loss of superficial pain sensation, which in the severest cases progresses to the loss of all types of sensation in a glove-and-stocking distribution. Often, such sensory symptoms are accompanied by increased painful sensitivity of the limbs initially to superficial light touch, and, as the neuropathy evolves, to deep palpation of muscles and tendons (Victor, 1984). When present, autonomic skin changes give rise to reddening, atrophy, and hair loss in the same distribution as the sensory damage.

What are the Symptoms of Alcoholic Neuropathy?

Chronic alcohol misuse (but also vitamin deficiencies and exposure to heavy metals and neurotoxic industrial agents) leads to metabolic alterations in the nerve cells and degeneration of the axial flux. Each axon begins to degenerate from the most distal sections of the cell body whose integrity depends on the consistency of the streams. As the underlying disease progresses, the axonal flux becomes less and less efficient, and the degeneration begins to extend to portions of the axons closer to the cell body and is accompanied by destruction of the myelinic sheaths. This is known as the ‘dying back’ phenomenon or retrograde degeneration (Savoldi, 1995; Manzo and Costa, 1998).

This condition is typically not life-threatening, but the nerve damage from alcoholic neuropathy is usually permanent. Epidermal nerve fibre density was assessed in two studies, both of which supported decremental nerve fibre density distally in the lower limb, anecdotally supportive of a length-dependent pattern [53, 63]. The sometimes-conflicting findings between biopsy findings may be representative of the complex interplay of pathological factors in alcohol-related peripheral neuropathy and is indicative of the need for further research in this area. If you experience any of these symptoms, it is vital to seek medical attention to determine the cause and begin treatment. Early diagnosis and intervention can help limit the damage caused by alcoholic neuropathy, reduce symptoms, and improve your overall quality of life. While becoming sober and improving your diet will help your body heal in the long-term, neither will immediately help you deal with the pain and other symptoms of alcoholic neuropathy.

Living With And Overcoming Alcohol Neuropathy

Alcoholic polyneuropathy is caused primarily by chronic alcoholism; however, vitamin deficiencies are also known to contribute to its development. This disease typically occurs in chronic alcoholics who have some sort of nutritional deficiency. Treatment may involve nutritional supplementation, pain management, and abstaining from alcohol.

• Thirteen studies provided data from the biopsy of the sural nerve or the skin in patients with alcohol-related peripheral neuropathy.
• Dr. Moawad regularly writes and edits health and career content for medical books and publications.
• The most important thing you can do to treat this condition is to stop drinking.
• It may not sound like the worst symptom, but the effects can severely impact your balance and ability to avoid bumping into things.
• The prevalence of misuse of different alcoholic beverages in the age-divided sample is shown in Table 2.

This activity describes the evaluation and management of alcoholic neuropathy and reviews the role of the interprofessional team in improving care for patients with this condition. Alcoholic neuropathy, also known as alcoholic peripheral neuropathy, refers to damage of the nerves due to chronic and excessive alcohol consumption. Affected nerves include the peripheral nerves, primarily located in the arms and legs, and the autonomic nerves, which help regulate our internal body functions. About 46% of chronic alcohol users will eventually develop this condition. Neurologic complications of alcohol abuse may also result from nutritional deficiency because alcoholics tend to eat poorly and may become depleted of thiamine or other vitamins important for nervous system function.

If you’re worried about the possibility of developing alcoholic neuropathy, your best option is to avoid drinking alcohol altogether, or at least severely taper your drinking to the point where it is no longer excessive. If you have trouble ceasing drinking, it may be time to consider entering into a formal treatment program. Making lifestyle changes is a key component in managing symptoms of alcoholic neuropathy. Eating a healthy diet with plenty of fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and whole grains can help to provide essential vitamins and nutrients necessary for nerve health.

• This might improve your symptoms and facilitate forestall more nerve harm.
• However, reliable information indicated that all subjects consumed at least 100 g of alcohol per day.
• However, neuropathy is generally an exclusion criterion for transplantation.
• Symptoms can include pain, numbness, tingling, loss of balance and coordination, muscle weakness, problems with digestion, and other issues.
• In severe cases of alcohol addiction, when a liver transplant is necessary, there have been some instances of reduced symptoms, post-op, but not even a transplant can abate the symptoms of late-stage alcoholic neuropathy.
• Despite the complex interactions between alcohol and diet, there is a consistent clinical pattern of polyneuropathy in chronic alcoholics (Victor, 1984).

If you’re concerned that you might have developed alcoholic neuropathy, your first port of call should be to contact a doctor and book yourself in for a check-up ASAP. Let’s address the different forms of alcoholic neuropathy individually and how they affect the human body. Some of the most common symptoms are numbness or tingling sensation of the extremities, pain or a burning sensation in the extremities, difficulty walking, difficulty urinating, and difficulty talking or swallowing. Frequencies and descriptive characteristics extracted were calculated. This study is reported in accordance with the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analysis (PRISMA) guidelines [7]. Statistical calculation of pooled proportions was conducted in R language, using the default settings of the “meta” package and the “metaprop” function with a random effects model [8].