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Updated: Aug 10, 2026

Establishing a Mouse Model of a Pure Small Fiber Neuropathy with the Ultrapotent Agonist of Transient Receptor Potential Vanilloid Type 1
Published on: February 13, 2018
Small-diameter nerve fiber neuropathy in systemic lupus erythematosus
Lasse G Gøransson1, Anne B Tjensvoll, Anita Herigstad
1Department of Internal Medicine, Stavanger University Hospital, Norway. gola@sir.no
Background:
Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an inflammatory, autoimmune, multiorgan disease often involving the central and peripheral nervous systems.
Objective:
To determine whether there is a selective small-diameter nerve fiber neuropathy in patients with SLE.
Design:
Cross-sectional study.
Setting:
Stavanger University Hospital, Stavanger, Norway. Patients Sixty patients with SLE, aged 43.2 +/- 13.5 years (mean +/- SD).
Interventions:
Skin biopsies, nerve conduction studies, and clinical neurologic examinations.
Main Outcome Measures:
Density of intraepidermal small-diameter nerve fibers in skin biopsy specimens and large-diameter nerve fiber function as determined by nerve conduction studies and clinical examinations.
Results:
The mean density of intraepidermal small-diameter nerve fibers in patients with SLE was 7.5 +/- 3.8/mm. Eight patients (13%) had densities below reference values, consistent with small-diameter nerve fiber neuropathy, and results of nerve conduction studies were normal in 6 of them. Eleven patients (18%) had abnormal results of nerve conduction studies, reflecting large-diameter nerve fiber neuropathy, and 4 patients (7%) were classified by an experienced neurologist as having polyneuropathy after the clinical examination.
Conclusions:
An abnormal reduction in intraepidermal small-diameter nerve fiber densities is evident in some patients despite normal function of their larger nerve fibers. This adds further support to the theory that a pure small-diameter nerve fiber neuropathy may occur in SLE.
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