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Treatment for Diabetic Nerve Pain

K

kea

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I read on another page on this site that there are treatment available for DNP but I did not find more details than the normal advice about low BG, foot care etc. Is there anything else i.e medicin available?
I was diagnosed with diabetes too late. I actually consulted my GP 2 years ago about my feet problem but he didn't understand what it was. I had blood test taken and he said the results were ok, nothing to worry about. Now 2 years later I have through my diabetes nurse got the result of that first test and BG was 14.8 mmol/l !! The doctor said nothing about diabetes. I find that imcompetence shocking but done is done and now I am keeping my BG low and HbA1c is also coming down, but my feet are still partly numb and sometimes I feel sharp burning pain.
 
Hi kea.

The information is there, you just needed to follow the links ?

Anyway here is some information which may be of help.

There are several medications that are approved for the treatment of diabetic neuropathy, including duloxetine (Cymbalta®) and pregabalin (Lyrica®). Other medications are also used, but are not "officially" approved; these include tricyclic antidepressants (eg, amitriptyline), gabapentin (Neurontin®), tramadol (Ultram®), and alpha-lipoic acid.

This is something you need to discuss with your GP and get something effective prescribed.
 
I've recently been prescribed Duloxitene which I've found quite effective and is specifically licensed for Diabetic Neuropathy. However I wouldn't go asking your GP for it by name; doctors are (rightly) sceptical of - and irritated by - patients asking for specific drugs in the absence of a formal diagnosis. Doesn't stop you presenting him with the symptoms and see what he suggests, you could always subtly steer the conversation in the appropriate direction... :wink:
 
I take amitryptilin and tegratol works for me
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I've recently been prescribed Duloxitene which I've found quite effective and is specifically licensed for Diabetic Neuropathy.
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The probelm with taking antidepressants and analgaesics for dibatic neuropathy is that they don't deal with the underlying problem see mcvitamins.com although they are trying to sell a nerve tonic , these really do work , Benfotiamine and Methyl B 12 have radically improved my neuropathy see thehttp://www.diabetes.co.uk/diabetes-forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=9454 for more details
 
Soundgen said:
The probelm with taking antidepressants and analgaesics for dibatic neuropathy is that they don't deal with the underlying problem seemcvitamins.com although they are trying to sell a nerve tonic , these really do work , Benfotiamine and Methyl B 12 have radically improved my neuropathy see thehttp://www.diabetes.co.uk/diabetes-forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=9454 for more details
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Well I'm only reporting what works for me, and also that these two mentioned made no difference at all. However my neuropathy is long established so maybe that's why.
 
Well I'm only reporting what works for me, and also that these two mentioned made no difference at all. However my neuropathy is long established so maybe that's why.
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I'm sure that Duloxitene does control your perception of the diabetic pain , but it's only treating the sympton not the cause ,I would expect if you have had neuropathy for a long time then rebuilding the myelin sheath would take a long time as well , but just taking Duloxitene won't do that . I intend taking Benfotiamine and Methyl BB12 for ever


also take a look at this link

http://www.biomech.com/full_article/?ArticleID=11&month=11_12&year=2007
 
There are several medications that are approved for the treatment of diabetic neuropathy, including duloxetine (Cymbalta®) and pregabalin (Lyrica®). Other medications are also used, but are not "officially" approved; these include tricyclic antidepressants (eg, amitriptyline), gabapentin (Neurontin®), tramadol (Ultram®), and alpha-lipoic acid.
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Al except alpha-lipolic acid are anagaesics or antidepressanst they are only treating teh symptons not the underlying cause , alpha-lipolic acid is the only one which may help stop the neuropathy getting worse as Alpha lipoic acid is an antioxidant, which neutralizes potentially harmful chemicals called free radicals. BUT again alpha-lipolic acid can't undo the damage already done ,

See the McVitamins link above which explains neuriopathy very well
 
Hi Soundgen.

I'm slightly confused, so humour me. I thought this topic was actually asking about treatments ?

Whatever concerns in 2007 there may have been over the mailer mentioned in your link I fail to see what that has to do with the drug Duloxetine ? They have been resolved since then.

If Duloxetine works for people what is the problem. It is approved both in the UK and the States ? Anything that relieves symptoms and pain has to be a good thing surely ? Sometimes that's all anybody wants.

Glad to see your Benfotiamine is working well for you by the way.

Does Benfotiamine rebuild the Myelin Sheath ? Is there proof of this ? Does it cure Diabetic and non-Diabetic Neuropathy ? Is there any proof, not just your opinion.

I'm all for something that has a proven effect, just not sure I can believe all the miracle properties that seem to be attached to this product ? Are there any other things that it can 'cure ?'
 
Soundgen said:
I'm sure that Duloxitene does control your perception of the diabetic pain , but it's only treating the sympton not the cause ,I would expect if you have had neuropathy for a long time then rebuilding the myelin sheath would take a long time as well , but just taking Duloxitene won't do that . I intend taking Benfotiamine and Methyl BB12 for ever
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That's all it was prescribed - and I expect it - to do! Which was the basis of my response to kea's original question, treatment of symptom not cure for cause.

I wasn't aware of any "cure" for either neuropathy or nephropathy, I'd like to see some results first, but I'm always very interested to read about developments in this area.
 
If Duloxetine works for people what is the problem. It is approved both in the UK and the States ? Anything that relieves symptoms and pain has to be a good thing surely ? Sometimes that's all anybody wants.
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Yes it is good too get rid of any symtoms of neuropathy , but 1) it doesn't stop the neuropathy getting worse , alpha-lipolic can stop the neuropathy getting worse and so can vitamin B1 , which if you can't absorb ordinary B1 ( as I assume is my case and anyone with neuropathy or you wouldn't have got it in the first place ) needs to be taken as benfotiamine 2) B12 is also needed to rebuild the myalin sheath which I understand is made from Cholesterol , which is also in short supply in diabetics as statins are prescribed routinely to reduce cholesterol in the body

Mcvitamins have lots of testimonials to the efficay of their "nerve supprot formula .

I'm slightly confused, so humour me. I thought this topic was actually asking about treatments ?
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surely anything that makes the neuropathy go away is a treatment whether endorsed by themedics or not
 
Hi Soundgen.

I am not saying it is of no use I just think users should be aware of something other than your opinion of Benfotiamine.

Have a look at the disclaimer from the FDA posted on one of the myriad of Benfotiamine websites. All of which just want you to buy the stuff. Mostly from the USA.

FDA DISCLAIMER : Because benfotiamine is a dietary supplement the FDA only requires manufacturers and distributors to have credible evidence as to its safety. The FDA itself has not evaluated benfotiamine for safety or effectiveness. Benfotiamine therefore cannot be represented to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

This also from the European Food Standards Agency.
Benfotiamine is converted to thiamine, but given the facts that:
benfotiamine is not endogenous in humans,
the bioavailability of thiamine from benfotiamine is higher than that of other sources of thiamine,
benfotiamine in its dephosphorylated form is absorbed and bioavailable,
no toxicological studies have been provided for benfotiamine to evaluate reproductive and developmental toxicity, genotoxicity or long term toxicity of benfotiamine, and
the animal and clinical studies referred to, which were without adverse effects, were not designed to study possible adverse effects of benfotiamine,

The Panel concludes that the submitted data are insufficient to demonstrate the safety of the proposed use and use levels of benfotiamine.
 
I am not saying it is of no use I just think users should be aware of something other than your opinion of Benfotiamine.
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It's not my opinion of benfotiamine , I only started using it because of the BBC article last year , the internet is full of "scholarly" articles http://scholar.google.co.uk/scholar?q=Benfotiamine+&hl=en&btnG=Search other pages worth looking at are http://www.benfotiamineinfo.com/ http://www.naturodoc.com/library/treatments/bloodsugar.htm states For decades, benfotiamine has been safely used as a prescription drug in Europe, where this natural vitamin B1 derivative has demonstrated efficacy in preventing many serious complications of prolonged hyperglycemia. and has 28 supporting references
They are not all trying to sell benfotiamine , did you read the Warwick University report showing that all diabetics they tested both Type 1 and Type 2 only had 25% of the Thiamine in their blood plasma compared to non diabetics , this lack of thiamine leads to neuropathy , retinopathy and Nephropathy all things none of us want
 
Soundgen.
Had a sleep and ready to answer you again. :wink:

I have read all the links. How could I not ? There is no way of avoiding them whenever you post. You post the things all the time in response to any questions. That is the problem. You do seem to protest too much about this stuff Benfotiamine if anybody says it doesn't work for them.

Benfotiamine is not a prescription drug in the UK, it is a supplement.

Not everybody gets the same results with any drug or supplement. I have tried supplements over the years and frankly all that happened was my pocket's got emptier and the 'Health' food and supplement industry gets richer and bigger by the day. Bit like the Drug Companies now, major players and much to defend. Can't stand anybody rubbishing their products can they ?

I don't believe all these studies and articles you have posted which state that it may, it might, it probably, etc....? They are all just very small trials. We have seen many trials conducted and reported on. Not many of them actually are proven to be correct. This stuff appears to have been around some time but it still is a minority who believe it is worthwhile.

There is no conclusive proof that you have provided to me or pointed me to other than a host of links all basically saying the same thing, maybe, possibly, probably etc... ? I accept that it works for you. I don't have a problem with that at all.

As previously stated, as far as I am concerned it is not a magic bullet - so don't keep telling me that it cures x,y z etc - it doesn't. It is a manufactured supplement not a drug that is tested and licensed after having gone through rigorous testing and proper clinical trials in humans showing proven efficacy to actually do something.

When and if that changes then I might take the stuff and your opinions more seriously. Until then as far as I am concerned, it is no more effective than me having a run around the park. Costs nothing and is far more enjoyable and doesn't have to be ingested.

BTW, did you read the conclusions from the FDA and the European Food Standards Agency ?
 
I don't believe all these studies and articles you have posted which state that it may, it might, it probably, etc....? They are all just very small trials. We have seen many trials conducted and reported on. Not many of them actually are proven to be correct. This stuff appears to have been around some time but it still is a minority who believe it is worthwhile.
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Another trial for you not to believe in , this time published in Diabetes Care the Journal of the American Diabetics in 2006http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/29/9/2064.abstract
Again a very small trial BUT very conclusive

I have read all the links. How could I not ? There is no way of avoiding them whenever you post. You post the things all the time in response to any questions. That is the problem. You do seem to protest too much about this stuff Benfotiamine if anybody says it doesn't work for them.
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I have no problem with people saying it doesn't reduce their blood sugar levels , I have only posted about Benfotiamine when the thread has some relevance to neuropathy , retinopathy or nephropathy .

When and if that changes then I might take the stuff and your opinions more seriously. Until then as far as I am concerned, it is no more effective than me having a run around the park. Costs nothing and is far more enjoyable and doesn't have to be ingested.
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I agree entirely with you with regard to the run in the park an excellent way to reduce Bg levels , but what a run in the park can't do is return your vitamion B1 levels back to normal ! Lack of Vitamin B1 is the root cause behind the "opathies " when Bgs are very high

BTW, did you read the conclusions from the FDA and the European Food Standards Agency ?
Yes I did . please can you let me have the links or other wher you can get this ?

Not everybody gets the same results with any drug or supplement. I have tried supplements over the years and frankly all that happened was my pocket's got emptier and the 'Health' food and supplement industry gets richer and bigger by the day. Bit like the Drug Companies now, major players and much to defend. Can't stand anybody rubbishing their products can they ?
Click to expand...

I am trying other supplements too and will "report" on two more shortly , ( when I get some time )
 
Soundgen.
Can I just make this clear that I am wearing my MEMBER's hat here.



I give in, I surrender, I admit defeat, I capitulate, I have lost the will to live.........etc etc. :(

More supplements.......... :!:
 

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