[Respective evaluations of mechanical and vascular factors in the pathogenesis of neuroacropathy]

The purpose of this study was to determine the respective contributions of microcirculatory dysfunction and mechanical stresses to the pathogenesis of neurogenic trophic lesions. All patients with polyneuropathy complicated by cutaneous or osteoarticular trophic lesions (perforating forefoot ulcers, neurogenic osteoarthropathy) were eligible for the study. Patients with vascular, articular or neurological disorders other than the polyneuropathy were excluded. Digital photoplethysmography was used to evaluate microcirculatory reactivity. Electronic podometry was performed for static and dynamic foot pressure studies. A technetium-99m bone scan was done to look for evidence of neurogenic osteoarthropathy. The study included 35 patients (16 with alcohol abuse, 7 with diabetes mellitus, 10 with both disorders, one with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, and one with neuropathy of unknown etiology). Cutaneous or osteoarticular trophic lesions were correlated with the presence of static podoscopic abnormalities (dynamic abnormalities apparently had no influence per se). Digital vasoplegia was found in 8 of 35 patients (23%) and was closely correlated (p < 0.0001) with severity of the osteoarthropathy. These data suggest that mechanical factors play the central role in the production of neurogenic trophic lesions and that microcirculatory dysfunction may be a marker for severe neurogenic osteoarthropathy rather than a causative factor.