Peripheral neuropathy associated with mitochondrial myopathy.

Twenty patients with mitochondrial myopathy were investigated for the presence of peripheral neuropathy. There were clinical features of a mild sensorimotor neuropathy in 5 patients (25%) and nerve conduction studies were abnormal in 10 patients (50%). Electrophysiological studies of the whole group showed significant impairment of motor and sensory conduction, compared with controls. Sural nerve biopsy and morphometric studies were performed on 4 patients with clinical neuropathy. There was a reduction in density of myelinated fibers and electron microscope features of axonal degeneration affecting myelinated and unmyelinated fibers. Abnormal mitochondria containing paracrystalline inclusions were seen in the Schwann cell cytoplasm of two nerves.