Screening and diagnosis of diabetic polyneuropathy in clinical practice: A survey among German physicians (PROTECT Study Survey)
Dan Ziegler, Rüdiger Landgraf, Ralf Lobmann, Karlheinz Reiners, K. Rett, Oliver Schnell, Alexander Strom
Abstract
AIMS: We sought to obtain detailed information on the procedures and appraisal of screening for and diagnosing diabetic sensorimotor polyneuropathy (DSPN) in clinical practice. METHODS: This cross-sectional survey included 574 physicians from 13 federal states across Germany who responded to a tripartite questionnaire. RESULTS: The vast majority of the respondents reported to screen for DSPN at least once a year (87 %), while 65 % reported to examine the feet of DSPN patients at least twice a year. However, only 28 % and 20 % of the respondents used questionnaires and scores to assess the severity of neuropathic symptoms and signs, respectively. The rates of participants reporting that they do not use a standardized testing procedure were 58 % for pressure sensation, 62 % for pain sensation, and 54 % for thermal sensation. The rates of respondents reporting that they do not deploy a standardized assessment were 41 % for vibration sensation, 73 % for pressure sensation, 77 % for pain sensation, and 66 % for thermal sensation. Half of the physicians oriented themselves towards clinical guidelines when diagnosing DSPN. CONCLUSIONS: Despite relatively high screening rates, the willingness to implement both standardized testing procedures and assessment and to follow guidelines is low among physicians when screening for and clinically diagnosing DSPN.