Treating Diabetic Neuropathy

Some types of neuropathy are very common amongst diabetics, causing a great deal of pain and suffering. Symptoms such as digestive problems and erectile dysfunction can be common and you should be aware of the warning signs of a heart attack, which are crushing central chest pain and a tingling in the left arm.

The best treatment for diabetic neuropathy is to ensure that you control you blood glucose well within normal limits. This is the best way to prevent the onset and development of neuropathy and can even prevent it from progressing. Unfortunately this is the only advice given to help treat the condition. There are a number of drugs that are given to try and help prevent the pain that is associated with the condition, these are:


  • Non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID). These are common pain relievers such as ibuprofen that can be purchased from your local supermarket. They will help to decrease any pain you may experience if you should develop neuropathy. If you have any stomach or kidney problems you should consult your doctor before using this type of medication.
  • Prescription painkillers such as co-codamol, which is a combination of codeine (a painkiller like morphine) and paracetamol. These are more powerful than over the counter NSAID’s.
  • Some doctors may suggest you use topical (applied to the skin) painkillers. These are drugs such as lidocaine (a local anaesthetic), which when applied to the painful area can help decrease the pain.
  • Drugs called tricyclic anti-depressants (TCA’s) e.g. amitryptyline have been shown to be effective in decreasing the pain associated with neuropathy in over ¾ of patients. These are available on prescription from your doctor and are unsuitable if you suffer from heart problems.
  • Another type of anti-depressant known as the serotonin selective re-uptake inhibitors (SSRI’s) are also advocated for the treatment of neuropathy associated pain. These are also available on prescription from your doctor.
  • There are a number of other drugs that are available to help decrease the pain you may experience with neuropathy. Your doctor will be able to explain these to you and give you the one they think will give you the most benefit.

You may also wish to try other non medical treatments such as accupuncture and TENS. Both these treatment may provide you with some relief from neuropathic pain.

There are also a number of drugs to help treat many of the symptoms you may experience with diabetic neuropathy. There are drugs to help combat the symptoms that occur due to autonomic neuropathy, such as antibiotics to prevent bladder and kidney infections and drugs such as Viagra to help overcome erectile dysfunction.

It is vital that if you ever experience any of the symptoms listed in the article above that you consult your local doctor. It is likely that they will be able to give you treatment to help remove any of the symptoms you may have.

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