Take care of your nerves – millions of people with peripheral neuropathy are undiagnosed and suffer in silence

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Have you ever heard of peripheral neuropathy? In fact, millions of people suffer from this disease. Because of lack of awareness, some remain undiagnosed and untreated, suffering in silence for years. Peripheral neuropathy (PN) caused by nerve damage is one of the most common diseases of the peripheral nervous system, which controls all functions of our body, sensations in our hands, and movements of our muscles. Symptoms include numbness, tingling, prickling, and stabbing or burning pain mostly in the feet and hands.

Many people affected by the disease are not aware that their symptoms are due to PN as the disease often starts with mild symptoms and develops slowly, almost silently over long periods of time1.

At some point, symptoms become more severe and bothersome, affecting various aspects of a patient’s life. Without even realizing it, the patient will start losing mobility, struggle with performing simple day-to-day activities, have difficulties sleeping, or suffer injuries in their feet—all due to progressing nerve damage.

8 out of 10 patients remain undiagnosed

Unfortunately, PN awareness is low among the general population and many doctors. It is often only recognized and diagnosed at the late stages of the disease when nerve damage—that could otherwise have been avoided—has already progressed. Studies report, that approximately 80% of people, both in high- and low-income countries, living with diabetes and suffering from PN symptoms have not been diagnosed.2,3

This urgently needs to change. Raising awareness about the importance of nerve health and potential risk factors for nerve damage in the community and among physicians is key!

People particularly at risk of PN include diabetic patients, obese persons, chemotherapy or surgery patients, elderly, heavy drinkers, people with nutritional deficiencies, and smokers. The disease, however, can also affect younger and seemingly healthy people for no apparent reason.1 Often, people are not even aware that they are at risk as risk factors are not always obvious.

A new simple checklist will help to take care of peripheral nerves

It’s critical to watch out for symptoms and do an early check. There are many barriers preventing proper PN diagnosis.

On the patient’s side, these can include lack of awareness about PN and its risk factors, failing to notice the early signs, neglecting to see a doctor in time, and difficulties in verbalizing the symptoms. On the other side, physicians are often prevented from diagnosing PN patients due to crowded clinics, shortage of time, and lack of awareness and established diagnostic routine.4

That’s why Procter & Gamble, the makers of Vitamins B1+B6+B12 (Neurobion), collaborated with peripheral neuropathy experts from 10 countries and multiple specialties to devise a new tool—a screening questionnaire—that will help raise awareness about PN and shorten the journey to diagnosis.4

It’s the Neurometer and anyone can use it here or (https://pgamaphc.jebbit.com/s6xk2ac6) for free.

For people who don’t know about PN, Neurometer is already a first big step towards understanding this disease. All one must do is answer 5 simple questions to assess one’s nerve damage risks. If the result indicates PN, one can consult a doctor who can then use the Neurometer to diagnose PN with two simple, expert-recommended sensory tests.

With this questionnaire, patients can be empowered to take early action against PN and be treated more quickly, giving them greater chances of slowing down disease progression and avoiding long-term complications.

Neurometer is just one of the many efforts by Vitamin B1+B6+B12 (Neurobion) to make nerve care effortless, quick, and accessible for everybody.

If you think your nerves need care, do the questionnaire!

IF SYMPTOMS PERSIST, CONSULT YOUR DOCTOR.

ASC Reference No.: P0102P061824N

References

1. Callaghan BC, et al. JAMA. 2015;314: 2172–2181.

2. Ponirakis G, et al. J Diabetes Investig. 2019;10: 1558-1564.

3. Ziegler D, et al. Diabetes Res Clin Pract. 2018;139: 147-154

4. Gad H, et al. J Peripher Nerv Syst. 2024 Jan 24. Epub ahead of print. Free online version: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jns.12613

Health Talks: New observational, non-interventional clinical study-a giant leap for taking care of peripheral neuropathy sufferers

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Clinical study shows benefits on symptoms of peripheral neuropathy 

Manila, Philippines, March 2018 - Merck, a leading science and technology company in healthcare, life science and performance materials hosted NENOIN Symposium, a new clinical study shows benefits on symptoms of peripheral neuropathy with Dr. Rizaldy Pinzon last March 21, 2018 held at Marco Polo Hotel, Ortigas, Manila.

Peripheral neuropathy sufferers treated with a combination of three neurotropic B vitamins have experienced improvement on all neuropathy symptoms observed in the study independently from the cause of their neuropathy.

NERVES 

The nervous system allows us to perceive, comprehend, and respond to the world around us. It coordinates voluntary actions like walking and involuntary actions like breathing and swallowing, Nerves, the components of the nervous tissue, enable impulses sensation and motion between the brain, spinal cord and other parts of the body.

Dr. Rizaldy Pinzon and host Gelli Victor 

SENSORY PERIPHERAL NEUROPATHY 

Peripheral Neuropathy is a disorder affecting nerves, impairing them in their function of transmitting information and potentially affecting millions of people worldwide. Peripheral Neuropathy can cause various body discomforts, such as tingling, increased or decreased sensitivity to vibration, hot or cold, numbness, muscle weakness and even burning pain. Peripheral Neuropathy can cause "typical symptoms" which appear more often and "atypical symptoms, which are less frequent and can be overlooked or misinterpreted.

Example of symptoms of Peripheral Neuropathy: 

PARESTHESIA, NUMBNESS, BURNING PAIN, 

SHARP PAIN

 Dr. Rizaldy Pinzon

Symptoms of peripheral neuropathy can seem innocuous but have an impact of the patients' well-being and their quality of life. Early detection and treatment are crucial as well as effective treatment options, which relieve patients from their symptoms without having to suffer from significant side effects.

OBSERVATIONAL, NON-INTERVENTIONAL CLINICAL STUDY CONFIRMS THE BENEFITS OF A UNIQUE TREATMENT FOR ALL

A new clinical study (Asian Journal of Medical Sciences, lan 2018) has brought a major step forward for nerve health: it has demonstrated that an effective treatment helps relieve all neuropathy symptoms (observed in the study), regardless of the cause of peripheral neuropathy. 

Whether the patients were suffering from numbness, pain or paraesthesia (usually painless sensation like tingling or itching, often felt in the arms and feet, they experienced relief on all these symptoms. It was also observed that the longer they used the treatment, the more relief the patients felt from these symptoms. 

Finally it is also very reassuring to see that the treatment has shown a good tolerance profile over the whole duration (3 months).

Neurobion

Neurobion is a B complex vitamin supplement that containing vitamin B1, Vitamin B6 and Vitamin B12

Neurobion contribute to nerve health and help provide relief for people who suffer from: -peripheral nerve problems -anyone at risk of vitamin B deficiency ( eg over-55 years old, vegetarians, diabetics and pre-diabetics and others.) 

Neurobion helps to enhance and prolong quality of life when people start experiencing the signs of an impaired nervous system – numbness, tingling or even a sensation of pins and needles can be some of the first external signs. The risk for this condition can increased with age.

Neurobion is highly recommended by Doctors because the effectiveness of the Neurobion is clinically proven to help nerve fibers work well and to relieve the symptoms of damage to the nervous system (neuropathy).