Combining cutaneous silent periods with quantitative sudomotor axon reflex testing in the assessment of diabetic small fiber neuropathy.

OBJECTIVE: Routine electrophysiological testing is often normal in the evaluation of painful diabetic neuropathy, as it is unable to detect dysfunction of thinly myelinated (Aδ) and unmyelinated (C) small fibers. Although cutaneous silent periods (CSP) and quantitative sudomotor axon reflex testing (QSART) respectively evaluate these fiber types in the extremities, these two tests have yet to be assessed together. METHODS: 26 patients with a clinical diagnosis of small fiber neuropathy (SFN) and 26 age-matched controls were assessed. Nine patients had Type I diabetes, nine had Type II diabetes, and eight had impaired glucose tolerance. The CSP onset latency and duration were recorded in each extremity. QSART was performed on the right side. RESULTS: 58% (15/26) of patients had abnormal sweat volumes obtained from QSART, while 50% (13/26) of patients had abnormal CSP responses. Combining these two tests increased the sensitivity of testing to 77% (20/26). Abnormalities were seen equally across all patient groups. CONCLUSIONS: Combining CSP with QSART significantly increases the sensitivity of testing when assessing patients with SFN related to diabetes, or prediabetes. SIGNIFICANCE: For clinically suspected SFN, it is preferable to test more than one small fiber type, as each possess different structural and functional properties and may be heterogeneously affected between patients.