EFFECT OF NON-ALCOHOLIC FATTY LIVER DISEASE ON THE COURSE OF DIABETIC POLYNEUROPATHY IN PATIENTS WITH TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS.

OBJECTIVE

The aim: To study the peculiarities of diabetic polyneuropathy in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and concomitant NAFLD.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Materials and methods: We examined 75 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus, including 31 (41.3%) women and 44 (58.7%) men. The main group included 35 patients with NAFLD (46.7%), and the control group included 40 patients without NAFLD (53.3%). The severity of polyneuropathy was assessed using the Toronto clinical neuropathy score. The presence of neuropathic pain syndrome in patients allowed us to divide patients into groups with painful or painless forms of diabetic polyneuropathy. The electroneuromyographic examination was used to study nerve conduction parameters, namely peroneal motor nerve conduction velocity (PMNCV), sensory nerve action potential (SNAP), and sensory nerve conduction velocity (SNCV).

RESULTS

Results: The proportion of patients who did not have diabetic polyneuropathy in the NAFLD group was 12.5%, and in the group without NAFLD - 87.2%. The frequency of diabetic polyneuropathy was higher in the main group, namely: mild, moderate, and severe polyneuropathy was 80%, 56% and 59.3%, respectively, compared to the control group - 20%, 44%, 40.7% (p=0.02). The painful form of DPN was more common in patients of the main group than in the control group, respectively 69.8% and 30.2% (p=0.01). The degree of liver fibrosis did not affect the course of DPN. The study of nerve conduction by PMNCV, SNAP, and SNCV parameters showed that PMNCV was higher in the NAFLD group, and SNAP and SNCV - in the control group, but without statistical significance (p>0.05).

CONCLUSION

Conclusions: In patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus, the presence of NAFLD affects the severity of diabetic polyneuropathy and increases the risk of painful DPN. The degree of liver fibrosis did not show an effect on the development of diabetic polyneuropathy. ENMG parameters did not demonstrate a statistically significant difference in the study groups.