Neuropathy of uremia: evaluation by nerve conduction velocity versus neurospecific current perception threshold

Normal peripheral nerve conduction is a marker of adequate dialytic therapy in the ESRD population. Decreasing nerve function detected by periodic testing indicates insufficient dialysis. The standard test for the quantitative evaluation of nerve integrity is the nerve conduction test (NCT). A study of 34 dialysis patients proves that the measurement of current perception threshold (CPT) is equally effective to NCT in defining peripheral nerve function (r = 0.81; p less than 0.001). The superiority of the CPT examination is discussed.