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NJ Neuropathy Experts Explain Neuropathy Causes and Treatments

Neuropathy

Neuropathy is strictly defined as a disease or malfunction of a nerve or group of nerves, says The Plastic Surgery Center.

However, it is commonly used when talking about any disease process that causes the patient to feel numbness, tingling, decreased sensation, and pain in a specific area of their body. It is most commonly used to denote a problem in the legs, but the hands can be affected, as can other areas.

There are many, many causes of neuropathy, from diabetes to cancer, drugs, alcohol, lead poisoning, and genetic or hereditary conditions. The list is huge, but the most common neuropathy cause is diabetes.

Neuropathy symptoms are usually numbness, tingling, pain, decreased sensation, and pain in the affected part of the body. The severity varies greatly from patient to patient. Treatment for neuropathy is mostly centered around treating the symptoms, usually the pain, since that is what distresses the patient the most. Unfortunately, the treatments aren’t great, and many of the medications have side effects. Many patients just suffer and try many home remedies with little improvement.

More recently, surgeons have begun to treat the symptoms of Neuropathy with surgical decompression of the affected nerves. In select cases, freeing up the nerve at certain “bottleneck” points in the hands or feet can give significant, long-lasting relief to the patient, even though it does not in and of itself “cure” the neuropathy.

The team of plastic and reconstructive surgeons at the Institute for Advanced Reconstruction have over 50 years of combined experience in the field of nerve reconstruction, including neuropathy. The physicians utilize the latest cutting-edge techniques to restore function that has been lost due to nerve damage and disease. Procedures performed range from hand nerve surgery to relieve disorders such as carpal tunnel syndrome to advanced, highly effective methods of neuropathy treatment.

Request an appointment today for more information.