If you have been told that you have peripheral neuropathy (PN) and / or neuropathic pain (NeP) the chances are that you will be pleased to to have found this web site. Many people in your situation feel confused and a little afraid. Uncertainty over the future course of your illness, along with pain, may feature highly as cause for concern. Being told that you have a condition which you may never have even heard of before can also lower your self confidence. It may surprise you to know that you are not on your own, far from it. Some authorities have estimated that at least up to 8% of the UK population may be affected by PN. That equates to approximately 4.7 million people in the UK alone.
Our first message to you is "don't worry"; you are not on your own. The Neuropathy Trust began in 1998 with one individual who, like yourself, believed that he was just one of a few people affected. Learning more about these common conditions and their likely effects on yourself and others is one way to begin the process of regaining your confidence. It may become a turning point in your own life, as it has been for so many other people.
Peripheral Neuropathy
PN is a common condition. It can often cause great distress and is sometimes even disabling. When you consider that you could not even move a muscle without your nervous system you can perhaps understand why the proper functioning of this vast communications network is so important to each one of us. Damage to this network of nerves may be caused in many ways and some of the cause are mentioned in the right hand column of this page. One nerve only may be affected, several nerves, or in some cases the damage may be more widespread. Although there are many causes of PN they produce many common symptoms: muscle weakness, numbness, and abnormal sensations such as burning, tickling, pricking or tingling, may be experienced. Pain in the arms, hands, legs or feet may also occur. Unfortunately it is not always possible to discover the underlying cause of the damage to the nerves.
Neuropathic pain is also believed to affect up 8% of the UK population and may be defined as pain arising from a disturbance of function or pathological change in a nerve. The multiple kinds of abnormal pain sensations may suggest that several different changes from the normal healthy nerves have taken place.
Some people may experience sever pain as a result of just light pressure from clothing, air movement, or changes in temperature. Others may experience spontaneous pain for which no obvious cause can be determined. Such pain may be continuous or may even occur in intermittent bursts. When tests and examinations are performed on people affected in this way, it is common to also discover different areas of numbness, due to damaged nerves.
There is a growing awareness amongst doctors that our perception of pain is complex and that many different factors are involved.
In many instances it is not always possible to discover the underlying cause and these cases are described as 'idiopathic' or 'cryptogenic'.
Large numbers of our supporters have told us how their medical conditions have seriously affected their day to day living and, in particular, their overall quality of life. Uncertainty over the future course of their illness, coupled with neuropathic pain, feature highly as causes for great concern. Looking 'normal' to other people and having to explain the disease to others adds another dimension to natural worries and concerns.
Peripheral neuropathy and neuropathic pain are not 'new conditions'; what is new is the ever increasing light which is beginning to be shed on them, exposing them as real physical illnesses which deserve more general attention than they are at present given.
Thanks to the efforts of researchers working in these scientific areas, and those who support and encourage them, new discoveries are inevitable which may eventually lead to even more effective treatments. there is now, thankfully, a growing trend to recognise the importance of more provision in our healthcare system for people with neuropathies and neuropathic pain.
