Understanding Pain in Diabetic Neuropathy

The central nervous system may have close ties with PDN.  The spinal cord can become damaged and create chronic pain for diabetics.  The branch-like structures that come from the neurons of the spine are called dendrites.  They are there to gather the information provided by the rest of the body.  As the body is damaged these dendrites will change their shape and function.

In another animal model there has been observations of changes in neurons in the thalamus.  These changes slowly lead to an increase response from the animals to touch or light pain.  The thalamus is a portion of the brain that transmits pain signals from the spinal cord to the cerebral cortex.  As time goes on the neurons are much more active and create a stronger response to stimuli.