If you or a loved one is struggling with alcohol-related neuropathy or alcohol misuse or addiction, it’s important to know that help is available. Evidence-based addiction treatment can lead to positive health outcomes for those struggling with alcohol addiction. If you or a loved one is ready to seek help, consider visiting the rehabs.com treatment directory.

Alcohol, Nerve Function, & Malnutrition

She has over a decade of direct patient care experience working as a registered nurse specializing in neurotrauma, stroke, and the emergency room. People who struggle with alcoholism should try to eat a healthy and balanced diet, even if they don’t feel hungry. The central nervous system is a complex and resilient system of nerves and organs that allows us to sense alcholic neuropathy and interact with our surroundings and monitor the internal state of our own bodies. But this system also requires care and can be harmed in a variety of different ways. Use of this website and any information contained herein is governed by the Healthgrades User Agreement.

• For a list of rehabs and treatment centers near you, visit our rehab directory.
• Light touch can feel exaggerated and painful, particularly in the fingers and toes.
• Nerves don’t have a resilient ability to regenerate if they are severely damaged.
• Protein kinase C (PKC) is a family of protein kinases consisting of approximately 10 isozymes.
• While not specifically approved for the treatment of alcoholic neuropathy, antidepressant medications are often prescribed to help control the pain.
• Thus, treatment with TCAs may provide symptomatic relief in patients with alcoholic neuropathy.

Get Help for Alcoholism

We do not receive any commission or fee that is dependent upon which treatment provider a caller chooses. You can find alcohol rehab treatment centers that will help with the detox process and provide ongoing care for your substance misuse. This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

How do doctors diagnose alcoholic neuropathy?

You may also benefit from a support group to help you reduce your drinking or completely quit drinking alcohol. There are no medications that can help improve loss of sensation, strengthen muscle weakness, or assist with the coordination and balance problems caused by alcoholic neuropathy. However, some people notice an improvement in symptoms a few months after discontinuing alcohol intake. Alcoholic neuropathy is caused by nutritional deficiency, as well Sober living home as toxins that build up in the body. Alcohol decreases the absorption of nutrients such as magnesium, selenium, and vitamins B1 and B2, causing significant deficits that affect many areas of the body, including the nerves.

Treatment Options for Alcoholic Neuropathy

Alcoholic neuropathy is a neurological disorder caused by excessive long-term alcohol consumption. By understanding alcoholic neuropathy’s causes, symptoms and treatments, it’s possible to move toward a healthier and happier life. Alcohol abuse contributes to peripheral neuropathy development involving both somatic and autonomic nerves 154, 155. However, impairments of autonomic functions are scarcer and less intensified, and, usually, clinical symptoms are delayed 156. According to many studies, alcohol-induced autonomic neuropathy (AAN) not only leads to potential damage to internal organs but also increases the mortality rate of patients 157, 158. It was observed that abstinence may lead to the regression of several symptoms of AAN 159.

Treatment Process

A doctor may diagnose a person with alcoholic neuropathy, if alcohol use has damaged the peripheral nerves. People who drink heavily on a regular basis are at risk of developing this condition. Alcoholic neuropathy damages the nerves due to prolonged and excessive alcohol consumption. This damage prevents the nerves from communicating information from one body area to another.

• Yes, long-term excessive alcohol consumption may lead to peripheral neuropathy, which can cause pain in your feet.
• These findings support the idea that the increased number of membrane-bound mGluR5 following chronic ethanol consumption may lead to a long lasting activation of neuronal protein kinase C in the dorsal horn of the spinal cord.
• As a result, it is usually necessary to get medical help to manage alcohol use disorder.
• Other botanical or nutrient therapies include myo-inositol, vitamin E, topical capsaicin, and N-acetylcysteine.
• The data indicates that there is both small and large fibre loss in alcohol-related neuropathy, but that small fibre loss is generally predominant 3, 51, 53, 56, 59, 63, 86.
• A doctor may also want to test the functioning of the kidneys, liver, and thyroid.

Nerves help you to move (motor nerves) and feel physical sensations (sensory nerves). Some of your bodily functions are autonomic, which means that you don’t directly control them. Nerves that are part of the autonomic nervous https://ecosoberhouse.com/ system help to regulate heart rate, body temperature, respiration, and blood pressure. Polyneuropathy involves damage to more than one nerve at the same time, usually multiple nerves throughout the peripheral nervous system and all over the body. Among patients with chronic alcohol use disorder, neuropathy is the most common harmful sequelae. It is estimated that in the United States, 25% to 66% of chronic alcohol users experience some form of neuropathy; however, the true incidence in the general population is unknown.