Symptoms

The first symptoms of peripheral neuropathy are usually pain and tingling in the toes. These sensations may be accompanied by some numbness. Over months and years, these symptoms gradually progress up the leg. The symptoms vary in intensity from one person to another and may include diminished or absent reflexes, numbness, pain, burning or stinging sensations, aching, weak muscles or supersensitivity, as to the feel of bed sheets on the leg. Most of the time, symptoms are in both legs. Over time, the pain is replaced with numbness.

Symptoms of autonomic neuropathy vary depending on the nerves that are affected. The most common is male impotence; by age 43, 46 percent of men with type 1 diabetes experienced impotence (erectile dysfunction), according to some studies. Some women also report diminished sexual responsiveness, probably due to decreased sensation. When autonomic neuropathy affects the digestive system, the symptoms may be diarrhea or constipation, difficulty swallowing, or a bloated feeling with nausea. Poor bladder emptying is another symptom of autonomic neuropathy. Dizziness when you stand up, caused by a sudden drop in blood pressure called orthostasisis, is a symptom of another.