The Clinical Study Of Using High Frequency Ultrasound To Observe Nerve Endings Neuropathy With Diabetic Foot

Objective To explore the clinical application of high frequency ultrasound to observe nerve endings neuropathy with diabetic foot.Methods High frequency ultrasound was used to observe the changes and diameters of the medial branch of deep peroneal nerves both in a cohort of 29 clinically diagnosed peripheral neuropathy patients and a control group of 25 healthy voluteers. The laser doppler imaging was performed in the two groups to observe the blood perfusion of microcirculation. In addition, three-dimensional imaging was also performed.Results Distinct echoic appearances were distinctly showed both in the diabetic feet patients and healthy volunteers. In healthy volunteers, hypoechoic bands of the medial branch of deep peroneal nerves were readily observed at transverse locations and longitudinal sections. However, these hypoechoic bands of the nerves were not obviously in diabetic feet patients, and the neural surfaces were irregular. Additionally, the US echoes of the nerves in diabetic feet patients were more heterogeneous than those in control group.The mean diameters of nerves were 1.3±0.3mm in patients with diabetic foot and 0.8±0.2mm in the healthy volunteers(P<0.05). Three-dimensional imaging was clearly shown the normal stereostructure of the medial branch of deep peroneal nerves. Finally, the laser doppler imaging showed abnormalities in patients with diabetic feet.Conclusion High frequency ultrasound may be used as an non-invasive, reliable and real-time tool to evaluate the treatment and therapeutic effects of the nerve endings neuropathy with diabetic foot, which has important value in clinical application.