Central sensory motor pathways are less affected than peripheral in chronic renal failure

In chronic renal failure, peripheral neuropathy although is well recognised but there are only a few studies on the evaluation of central sensory pathways and none on central motor pathways. This study is aimed at the evaluation of peripheral and central sensory motor pathways. In this prospective hospital based study, 19 patients with chronic renal failure on regular hemodialysis were included. They were subjected to detailed clinical evaluation and blood urea nitrogen, serum creatinine, serum protein, haemoglobin and vasculitic profile were carried out in all the patients. Peroneal motor conduction, sural sensory conduction, tibial somatosensory evoked potential (SEP) and motor evoked potential to tibialis anterior (CMCT-TA) were carried out in all the patients and the results correlated with clinical and biochemical parameters. The mean age of the patients was 34.6 y and 1 of them was female. The duration of renal failure ranged between 0.3 and 5 years. Nerve conduction studies were abnormal in 12 patients of whom sural nerve conduction was abnormal in 10 and peroneal in 8 patients. Central conduction, motor or sensory or both were abnormal in 5 patients. Central motor conduction time to tibialis anterior was marginally prolonged in 3 patients and tibial SEPs were recordable in 2 and prolonged in 1 patient. The central and peripheral conduction did not correlate with duration of illness, serum creatinine and hemoglobin levels. It is concluded that central pathways are less frequently and less severely affected than the peripheral in chronic renal failure.