painful toes

[Texica]

I've have diabetes and my doctor recently diagnosed me with nueropathy in my toes. He says it's because of the diabetes and the blood sugar, but my blood sugars are in good control with my medications, so I'm not sure if this is what I have. He says I have numbness, but I can feel my toes and there is pain, like a sharp pain, kind of shooting. Has anyone experienced this? Is this nueropathy or something else?

[Dr. D]

You can still develop diabetic neuropathy, even if your blood sugars are in good control. About 5% of diabetics will develop painful diabetic neuropathy. It does seem confusing that you could be losing sensation in your feet, but at the same time experiencing pain. This is, in fact, what happens. There are different nerve pathways which carry information from your feet to your brain. Temperature, vibration, position and pain are all different types of sensory information that your nerves transmit to your brain. So, it is possible to not feel vibration, but still experience pain.

In the early stages of neuropathy, most diabetics can still feel their toes. It is possible there may be another cause of your painful toes and this is something you may want to further discuss with your doctor. In the mean time, make sure to follow your doctors advice on diabetic foot care.