J Korean Med Sci.  2000 Apr;15(2):211-216. 10.3346/jkms.2000.15.2.211.

Clinicopathologic analysis of 124 biopsy-proven peripheral nerve diseases

• Hong SM
• Ha H
• Suh JH
• Kim KK
• Khang SK
• Ro JY
• Park SH

• KMID: 648126
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2000.15.2.211

Abstract

We reviewed dinical, histological and ultrastructural findings of 124 cases of sural nerve biopsy specimens to delineate the trends of peripheral nerve diseases in our institute. Eighty-one were men and 43 were women. We categorized them into five groups: specific diagnosis (66 cases, 53.2%), axonal degeneration type (47 cases, 37.9%), demyelinating type (4 cases, 3.2%), mixed axonal degeneration-demyelinating type (6 cases, 4.8%) and normal (1 case, 0.9%). Cases with specific diagnosis included 21 inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (15 chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy, 6 Guillain-Barre disease), 13 hereditary motor and sensory neuropathy (7 Charcot-Marie-Tooth type I, 6 Charcot-Marie-Tooth type II), 10 vasculitis, 6 toxic neuropathy, 4 leprosy, 3 diabetic neuropathy, 2 alcoholic neuropathy, 1 Fabry's disease and other specific diseases (5 cases). In our cases, the proportion of specific diagnoses was higher, while the proportion of demyelinating peripheral neuropathies and normal were lower than those of Western series. The results of this study indicate that 1) a dose clinicopathologic correlation is important to make a precise diagnosis of peripheral nerve biopsy, 2) Biopsy under strict indication may reduce unnecessary histologic examination, 3) There is no difference in disease pattern of peripheral neuropathy between Western people and Koreans.

Keyword

Microscopy, Electron; Peripheral Nervous System Diseases; Nerve, Sural; Biopsy

MeSH Terms

Adult
Biopsy
Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease/pathology
Demyelinating Diseases/pathology
Fabry Disease/pathology
Female
Hereditary Motor and Sensory Neuropathies/pathology
Human
Korea
Leprosy/pathology
Male
Microscopy, Electron
Nerve Fibers, Myelinated/pathology
Peripheral Nerves/ultrastructure
Peripheral Nerves/pathology
Peripheral Nervous System Diseases/pathology*
Peripheral Nervous System Diseases/microbiology
Polyradiculoneuropathy, Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating/pathology
Sural Nerve/ultrastructure
Sural Nerve/pathology*