Endocrine and metabolic disease: Confocal microscopy as a diagnostic aid

Diabetes is a systemic disease associated with many complications. These can be prevented and managed effectively if detected promptly. Confocal microscopy (CFM) is a diagnostic tool which has the potential to help in early detection of disease and timely management. CFM has the potential to serve as an excellent noninvasive modality for in vivo imaging and morphological analysis, which can aid us in assessing and monitoring various infectious and pathological diseases at the cellular level. Besides ophthalmological indications, CFM has shown good sensitivity and specificity for identifying those at risk of neuropathy and foot ulceration, monitoring evolution and therapeutic response in a wide range of neuropathies apart from diabetic neuropathy. Through this communication, we aim to sensitize the endocrinologists towards cerebral cavernous malformation as a biomarker to evaluate potential outcomes and therapies in human diabetic neuropathy.