dh has just been diagnosed with peripheral neuropathy

[MyTwoChocolateCoinsWorth]

Has anyone got this? Dh has been prescribed Gabapentin. He went to the gp alone and it seems he asked no bloody questions at all! the internet searches ive done have been very confusing and a little scary! is it serious? i asked dh did the gp say what causes it, dh hadnt asked!! did the gp say how to cure it, dh hadnt asked!! in fact, if i am to believe dh, it seems the conversation went something like this -

dh -- i get this shooting pain here and a cold feeling like my head is wet, possibly bleeding, but it isnt.

dr -- its peripheral neuropathy, take this

dh -- thanks, bye

gp -- come back if you get the pain while on the pills. bye.

now i go to the same gp and he's rather more forthcoming with me, so i can safely say its dh at fault here!!

does anyone know about this condition?

Prognosis, symptoms and therapy-I think it depends if it is inherited or acquired and which particular type he has. I do know that symptoms can be temporary in some cases so maybe that's the case for DH and why the GP was just gave tablets and sent him on his merry way.

If it isn't inherited it's usually trauma (a blow, damage to a nerve etc), illness or infection, or I think it can even be to do with drinking too much alcohol.

Sorry, not helping really. It's a general term for lots of very specific and varying conditions. Can you manhandle him back to the GP and ask some more questions?

Don't know about this condition but my DH has been on Gabapentin for 18 mo for nerve pain following a spinal cord injury. He's now coming off it and onto another drug called Pregabalin as the Gabapentin isn't working for him. But his is a very specific and complex situation so no comparisons are intended here. It is a very strong drug however and not without side effects so you should really find out as much about it as you can, especially at this time of year when he's probably wanting to drink. It might also affect his ability to drive in the first few days while his body gets used to it. I seem to remember DH ws pretty dopy on it at first. He was on a big dose though.

Your DH sounds like a typical bloke at the Docs but it's still the Docs responsibility to give as much info as possible. I'm surprised he hasn't discussed other things that might also be appropriate to look into such as physio. But I'm not a medical professional so have no idea what's involved. Get as much info as you can off the net and go back to the Doc to discuss when you can.

thanks for the replies.

i have to say, when you said it can even be to do with drinking too much alcohol i thought

Hellllll-loooooooooooo!!!!!!!!

as would anyone here who can remember my (many) bitter ramblings about dh's drinking!!

but since it appears there are many causes, i shall try, as you both suggest, to nudge my way into a gp appt with dh!

ta again.