Alcoholic Neuropathy: Symptoms, Stages & Treatment Options

Because the nerves to your feet are the longest in your body, they’re often the first to show signs of damage. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore what causes neuropathy in the feet, when to be concerned, and what you can do about it. Experts aren’t entirely sure how alcohol contributes to neuropathy yet, but evidence shows chronic drinking can damage peripheral nerves, which causes those unpleasant symptoms you’re probably well-familiar with. While there are no specific self-diagnosis methods for alcoholic neuropathy, individuals experiencing symptoms suggestive of the condition should seek medical attention. Recognizing the symptoms and understanding the potential link to alcoholism treatment alcohol consumption is crucial for early intervention.

Biopsy results

Alcohol misuse can lead to neurological damage that can affect multiple areas of a person’s health and well-being. The best way to avoid the issue is to limit alcoholic consumption to 2 or fewer drinks per day for males and 1 or fewer for females. Once you stop alcohol intake, a doctor can address your specific symptoms. Doctors tailor specific treatments and alcohol abstinence programs to the individual.

Alcoholic neuropathy: possible mechanisms and future treatment possibilities

Someone who struggles with alcoholism may replace meals with alcohol, take in a lot of empty calories, and not maintain a healthy and balanced diet. Alcohol can also deplete the body of essential nutrients, and thiamine (vitamin B1) deficiency is common in people who battle alcoholism. Malnutrition due to alcoholism can contribute to nerve damage and alcoholic polyneuropathy as well. The US National Library of Medicine (NLM) warns that around 50 percent of long-term heavy drinkers will suffer from alcoholic neuropathy. Alcohol consumption has been identified as a significant risk factor for the development and exacerbation of peripheral neuropathy, a condition characterized by damage to the peripheral nerves. These nerves are responsible for transmitting signals between the central nervous system and the rest of the body, controlling movements, sensations, and automatic functions.

Symptoms of Alcoholic Neuropathy

Most people with neuropathy live full, normal https://ecosoberhouse.com/ lifespans when the condition is properly managed. However, your long-term outlook depends on several important factors that we’ll explore in this comprehensive guide. Early alcoholic neuropathy, usually presenting as sensory symptoms in the extremities, is reversible if the patient stops drinking and establishes proper nutrition. However, more severe and prolonged cases may be irreversible, even with abstinence, and lead to lifelong impairment.

• While the research material provided does not include detailed anecdotes of individuals cured of alcoholic neuropathy, it does offer some insights into the recovery process.
• To learn more about the link between alcohol use and neuropathy, schedule an appointment online or over the phone with a provider at Interventional Pain and Regenerative Medicine Specialists in Northern Virginia.
• Elevated reactive oxygen species (ROS) from alcohol metabolism can injure nerve cells and DNA, hindering nerve regeneration.

Drinking alcohol with any neuropathy could cause further damage to nerves. Talk with your doctor before consuming alcohol if you have any diagnosis of peripheral neuropathy. A doctor may diagnose a person with alcoholic neuropathy, if alcohol use has damaged the peripheral nerves. People who drink heavily on a regular basis are at risk of developing this condition. Excessive alcohol consumption can lead to numerous health problems, with one of the most significant being alcoholic neuropathy.

Alcohol-related peripheral neuropathy: a systematic review and meta-analysis

• These can affect both your controlled and involuntary movements, as well as sensations.
• Several mGluR subtypes have been identified in the superficial dorsal horn of the spinal cord 76, 77 and on primary afferent fibres 78.
• The authors noted that Danish beer at the time of the study contained thiamine and vitamin B6.
• Alcohol interferes with the normal functioning of nerve cells by disrupting their ability to transmit signals effectively.

Long-term heavy alcohol use, particularly when accompanied by nutritional deficiencies, can damage the body’s nerves, leading to a host of painful and debilitating symptoms. Alcoholic neuropathy can affect both sensory and motor nerves, causing pain, hypersensitivity, numbness, muscle weakness, and lack of coordination and fine motor controls, largely in the extremities. Another study investigated the prevalence of autonomic and peripheral neuropathy among patients with alcoholism.

What are risk factors for alcoholic neuropathy?

Therefore, healthcare providers often recommend strict alcohol avoidance for patients with peripheral neuropathy to prevent symptom aggravation. One of the primary ways alcohol worsens neuropathy is through its direct toxic effect on peripheral nerves. Ethanol and its metabolites, such as acetaldehyde, damage nerve fibers and myelin sheaths, the protective covering around nerves. This damage impairs nerve conduction and can lead to permanent nerve dysfunction.

The serotonin/norepinephrine re-uptake inhibitors (SNRIs), duloxetine and venlafaxine, have a well-documented efficacy in painful polyneuropathy 117, 118. SSRIs have been studied in a few trials which have demonstrated a weak analgesic effect but the clinical relevance of these compounds is questionable 119. N-acetylcysteine, an amino acid, is a potent antioxidant and helps to enhance glutathione concentrations. N-acetylcysteine may have application in the prevention or treatment of neuropathy. Rats with experimentally-induced diabetes for 2 months had a 20% reduction in nerve conduction velocity and 48% reduction in endoneurial blood flow. A mechanism of cisplatin chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy was elucidated in an in vitro mouse model.

However, uncontrolled diabetes and its complications can affect overall health and longevity. Patients who maintain good glucose control and manage cardiovascular risk factors have outcomes similar to the general population. Autonomic neuropathy (affecting automatic can alcohol cause neuropathy body functions) requires closer monitoring. When severe, it can affect blood pressure regulation, heart rate, and digestion. If you’re struggling to control your drinking and worried about alcoholic neuropathy, help is available. For a list of rehabs and treatment centers near you, visit our rehab directory.

Oculomotor Nerve Palsy

Depletion of glutathione increases the susceptibility of neurones to oxidative stress and hyperalgesia 43, 44. In addition, alcohol affects the way your body uses, moves, and absorbs key nutrients essential for nerve functioning. Many people who drink excessively also don’t have the best nutritional intake, further contributing to the development of neuropathy.