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A risk factor is anything that increases a person's chances of getting a particular disease. Risk factors for peripheral neuropathy include:

• Diabetes

  • peripheral neuropathy occurs in up to 60% of patients with diabetes (type 1 or type 2)
  • risk of peripheral neuropathy increases in diabetics and pre-diabetics (people with elevated blood sugar but not yet diabetic) who have difficulty controlling their levels of blood sugar

• Autoimmune Diseases

  • systemic lupus erythematosus
  • rheumatoid arthritis
  • Guillain-Barre syndrome

• Metabolic Diseases

  • hypothyroidism
  • amyloidosis

• Hereditary Disorders

  • Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (CMT) - extreme wasting of muscles in the lower legs and feet, numbness in lower legs, and loss of tendon reflexes
  • Dejerine-Sottas syndrome - a subtype of CMT that involves earlier onset (children) and more severe and rapid progression

• Infectious Diseases

  • Lyme disease
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Hepatitis B
  • Leprosy

• Ischemic (circulatory) disorders

• Chronic kidney or liver failure
• Trauma or compression of a nerve - this is the most common cause of nerve injury
• Stress from repetitive motion or carpal tunnel syndrome
• Vitamin deficiency (especially vitamin B12)
• Alcohol abuse - poor health and nutrition in alcoholics may lead to vitamin deficiency associated with peripheral neuropathy
• Paraneoplastic disorders (tumors)
• Exposure to toxic substances

• Chemotherapy drugs used for cancer treatment, including:

  • vincristine
  • platinum-based drugs
  • taxanes

The frequency, intensity, and quality or duration of the pain in peripheral neuropathy may be determined, in part, by the underlying cause of the neuropathy as well as individual variability.