Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 30, 2025

Author Spotlight: Integrating Tai Chi with Mindfulness Training to Achieve an Effective Mind-Body Exercise
Published on: July 14, 2023
Painful Diabetic Neuropathy as a Cause for Refractory Ear Pain in Type 2 Diabetic Patients
Tamer M Attia, Ahmad Mahmoud Hamdan1
1Otolaryngology Head & Neck Surgery Department, Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Shebin Elkom, Egypt.
Objective:
To assess painful diabetic neuropathy (PDN) as a cause for refractory ear pain in type 2 diabetics.
Design:
An observational prospective case series study.
Setting:
Otolaryngology departments of tertiary referral hospitals from November 2019 to January 2021.
Patients:
Sixty-eight patients with type 2 diabetes with refractory ear pain of more than 1-month duration not responding to the routine analgesics.
Intervention:
Diagnostic intervention.
Main Outcome Measure:
The primary outcome measure was the prevalence of painful diabetic neuropathy among different causes of ear pain in the study sample of type II diabetics with refractory ear pain with an assessment of the response of these cases to routine neuropathic pain treatment with pregabalin.
Results:
Fifteen out of 68 (22.1%) were diagnosed as having painful diabetic neuropathy based on the "Douleur Neuropathique en 4 Questions" (DN4) questionnaire with its mean value being 6.47±1.19. There was a highly significant improvement of the 10 items of painful diabetic neuropathy scales after 1 month of treatment ( p < 0.001 for all). There was a significant positive correlation between the Hemoglobin A1c level and duration of diabetes at one hand and intensity of pain derived from the painful diabetic neuropathy scale at the other hand ( p = 0.0002, and p = 0.032 respectively).
Conclusion:
Painful diabetic neuropathy showed a potential correlation with refractory ear pain in type II diabetic patients with significant improvement after painful diabetic neuropathy treatment. Further studies are needed to confirm these findings.
More Related Videos
09:39Establishing 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
09:09Cryosectioning and Immunostaining Mouse Inner Ear Tissue: From Embryonic to Adult Stages
Published on: April 11, 2025
Related Concept Videos
Peripheral Arterial Disease II: Clinical Manifestations and Diagnostic Evaluation
Diabetes Mellitus: Type 2 and Gestational
Chronic Pancreatitis I: Introduction
Pancreatitis is the inflammation of the pancreas, which occurs when the immune system becomes active and causes swelling, pain, and disruptions in organ function. Pancreatitis can manifest as either an acute or chronic condition.
Acute pancreatitis arises suddenly and lasts for a brief duration, while chronic pancreatitis is a long-term affliction...
Pathophysiology of Diabetes
Type 1 diabetes is characterized by autoimmune-mediated destruction of pancreatic β cells, with environmental factors potentially triggering this process in genetically susceptible individuals. Despite many not having a family history, certain genes increase susceptibility,...
Diabetes Mellitus: Overview and Type I Subtype
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system mistakenly attacks and destroys the insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas. As a result, the body is unable to produce sufficient insulin, and individuals with...
Diabetes: Symptoms, Diagnosis, and Complications