Diseases that Cause Peripheral Neuropathy

When damage to nerves of the peripheral nervous system occurs, there is often a loss of sensation or a loss of motor function in certain parts of the body. This damage and subsequent reaction is known as peripheral neuropathy. There are multiple causes of this condition, including many diseases and illness-related infections.

Hereditary Disorders

• Diseases that are genetically transmitted or passed on through the family can result in peripheral neuropathy.
  Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease affects approximately one in 2,500 people, making it one of the most common inherited neurological disorders in the United States. This disease directly affects peripheral nerves and causes the loss of normal use of appendages. Dejerine-Sottas Disease is caused by gene mutations or duplications, and typically results in sufferers becoming wheelchair-bound. Congenital hypomyelinating neuropathy presents at birth and ranges in severity. It is a motor-sensory neuropathy and is symptomatically similar to spinal muscular atrophy. Familial Amyloidotic Polyneuropathy is a group of disorders caused by mutations on chromosome 18. It presents in adulthood and often causes many diseases, including peripheral neuropathy. Friedreich's ataxia results in the deterioration of nerve tissue in the spinal cord. This effects muscle movement of the arms and legs. Additionally, nerves become stripped of their insular covering (myelin sheath), which causes peripheral neuropathy.

Systemic Diseases

• Diseases that affect the entire body are often referred to as systemic diseases. Disorders that are considered systemic include metabolic disorders and endocrine disorders.
  Diabetes is a lifelong disease resulting in chronically high blood sugar levels. Diabetes mellitus (type 1) is a leading cause of peripheral neuropathy in the United States. Kidney disorders such as uremia (chronic kidney failure) can lead to abnormally high amounts of toxic substances in the blood. This excess can severely damage nerve tissue and cause peripheral neuropathy. Disease of the thyroid (hypothyroidism) is caused when the thyroid gland makes an insufficient amount of the thyroid hormone.
  Cancerous and benign tumors can permeate or inflict harmful pressure on nerve fibers. Additionally, tumors can develop directly from nerve tissue cells.

Inflammatory Diseases

• Chronic inflammation causes peripheral neuropathy when swelling leads to direct or indirect nerve damage. Additionally, chronic inflammation wears down connective tissue, which leads to injuries and infections of nerve fibers.
  Diseases that cause chronic inflammation and connective tissue damage include the following:
  Leprosy is caused by an organism, but how it is contracted is often difficult to determine. It presents with disfiguring skin abnormalities and progressive debilitation. The nerve damage eventually causes peripheral neuropathy. Rheumatoid arthritis leads to inflammation of the joints and surrounding tissues. It can also affect other organs. Sarcoidosis is a disease in which abnormal tissue develops in organs of the body. When this happens, swelling occurs in the lymph nodes, lungs, liver, eyes, skin or other tissues.
  Neuropathy can also result from inflamed blood vessels. These disorders are referred to as severe vasculitides.

Autoimmune Diseases

• When an autoimmune disease occurs, it is because the body's immune system response is malfunctioning. Normally, the immune system helps protect the body from harmful substances. Instead of protecting the body from harmful intruders, the immune system attacks harmful and healthy substances alike. The resulting overactive response leads to the destruction of healthy tissue and cells. When nerves and nerve cells are damaged, peripheral neuropathy occurs.
  Guillain-Barre Syndrome occurs when the body's defense system mistakenly believes the nervous system to be hazardous. This destruction of vital muscle-controlling nerves causes peripheral neuropathy. Systemic lupus erythematosus (lupus) may affect the skin, joints, kidneys and other organs. It affects nine times as many women as men, and its causes are unknown. Symptoms vary for each case. Sjogren syndrome features the destruction of saliva and tear glands. Additionally, it affects other parts of the body such as the kidneys and lungs. Its cause is unknown, and it occurs most often in women ages 40 to 50. Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is a sexually transmitted disease that gradually destroys the immune system. AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) is the final and most serious stage of HIV, and causes severe damage to the immune system.

Infections

• Infections that occur in conjunction with other diseases can result in peripheral neuropathy.
  Shingles (also known as Herpes zoster) often presents as a skin rash on one side of the body. This rash will present with blisters, and often occurs in a stripe-like pattern. This disease presents in adults and stems from the virus that causes chickenpox. The virus (usually dormant in the system for years after a case of chickenpox) is reactivated and attacks nerve fibers. Infection with HIV or full-blown AIDS is also associated with peripheral neuropathy. Due to HIV/AIDS' wearing down of the immune system, bacterial and viral infections become more threatening and more common; many of these are associated with peripheral neuropathy. Syphilis is a sexually transmitted infectious disease primarily affecting adults ages 20 to 29. The symptoms of the disease vary according to the stage of the disease, but it often presents with abnormal skin reactions on the genitals.