1.
[Clinical improvement of diabetic neuropathy with carbamazepine or diclofenac treatment].
Tinoco-Samos, A, Córdova-Pérez, N, Arenas-Téllez, JM, Vargas-Girón, A, Zárate, A, Hernández-Valencia, M
Revista medica del Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social. 2013;(5):496-501
Abstract
BACKGROUND diabetic neuropathy (DN) affects diverse aspects of a patient's life and there is not an optimal treatment. We did a comparative study of clinical improvement of DN with carbamazepine versus diclofenac. METHODS a prospective and longitudinal study of two groups with signs and symptoms of DN was done. One group had 30 patients who used carbamazepine with an initial dose of 200 mg, every 24 hours for one week, with a gradual increase of up to 200 mg every 6 hours for 10 months. The other group had 29 patients who used diclofenac sodium 100 mg every 12 hours. Bimonthly evaluations were made to graduate the pain according to the patients' perception and laboratory studies that included glucose and lipids profile. The statistical test used was ANOVA. RESULTS the patients who used carbamazepine presented absence of pain after 10 months compared with the diclofenac group (p < 0.01). The presence of cramps, muscular strength, pulses, perception of temperature and pressure improved significantly (p < 0.05) with the use of carbamazepine. On the other hand, muscular strength, tact and perception of temperature were deteriorated with the use of diclofenac. CONCLUSIONS it is important to provide the appropriate treatment to diabetic patients with DN.