Researchers from University of Michigan and Wayne State University are publishing the results of their study on the effects of triglycerides on diabetic neuropathy, a condition whereby nerves are damaged due to the progression of diabetes, often resulting in numbness, tingling, and pain in the feet, hands, legs and arms. Triglycerides are a type of fat that’s produced by the body. It’s a standard component to the “cholesterol test” which almost every person has had done. Elevated triglycerides can play a role in cardiovascular disease, and now this new study is suggesting that patients with high levels of triglycerides are more likely to experience worsening of their neuropathy. This is important because until now doctors couldn’t necessarily predict which patients will have a decline in their neuropathy. Now we may be able to target those patients with elevated triglycerides in hopes of slowing disease progression.
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Dr. Steven Chang, the author of DailyDose, is a staff physician with Kosmix RightHealth. Dr. Chang practices Family Medicine at the University of California Davis Medical Center, where his medical interests include both pediatric and geriatric care, public health, gay and lesbian health, and sleep medicine. Dr. Chang trained at the Stanford University affiliated O'Connor Hospital, and was a research fellow at the National Institute of Health. He holds an M.D. from McGill University and a BA in Public Health from Johns Hopkins University.