Anyone lost the ability to walk due to peripheral neuropathy?

Thank you Ray for understanding my frustration. I don’t claim to know more than the doctor but all I know is how strong I feel when I get the injections. My lower legs feel stronger too. I just think it would be worth a try to replace my knees. It can’t make things worse in my opinion.

I’m 76 so maybe it is my age. I do trust my doctor that does the injections but I have thought about getting a second opinion. I’m scheduled to get my injections on November 12. I am going to ask the doctor to reconsider knee replacement. I did have major back surgery in 2021. Not only did the surgery not make that issue better it’s actually worse. And the neuropathy started after that surgery. That surgeon said it would go away but it didn’t. I was ok as far as walking until the fall of last year. At that time I was working part time at a golf course mowing the roughs. Heck I could even play golf. But last fall I had to quit the job and that’s when my legs got so weak and my knees were buckling and then I was falling 2or 3 times a week. So now I’m using a walker to get around the house a little and when we go out my wife pushes me around in a transport chair.

@rjack6618
I can relate with the limited quality of life.

You need a new hip/knee orthopedic specialist to evaluate your knees. There is no such thing as neuropathy “going away” before an orthopedic surgeon does surgery. I have neuropathy and have had 3 spine surgeries and carpal tunnel surgery. I am in my mid 50s. Do you think you are being dismissed due to age?

Yes I have had all the tests the neurosurgeon ordered. According to him he found nothing that he could fix with surgery. Basically he said I might recover my ability to walk with extensive physical therapy. Funny thing is I’m numb but I’m not in pain. The other thing is I also have arthritis pretty bad in both knees and when I get them injected every three months I can almost walk without my walker. Or at least get around so much so easier and with no fear of my legs collapsing and falling. My knee doctor will not replace my knees until I have my neuropathy gone. I’m so frustrated because I believe I could regain my strength in my lower legs if I had new knees. The injections only make me stronger for about 3 weeks. The doctor will only due the injections every 3 months and I’m not sure but I think that is the insurance policy. Anyway my life is mostly just sitting watching tv and waiting for those 3 months to pass. Thanks for responding and best wishes to you.

@rjack6618 - My neuropathy is from 4 inches below the knees to toes, all numbness, poor balance, zero pain (thankful!!). My knees are a mess and was getting cortisone shots every 3 months. The shots work for 6 - 8 weeks and the last 4 - 6 weeks prior to next shot was painful. Osteoporosis is a concern so now, the orthopedic surgeon will give me shots no earlier than 5 months apart and he is absolutely correct. Due to peripheral neuropathy and greater chance of falling, my knees can't be replaced. Voltaren cream does reduce knee pain along with Advil. On my end, the insurance will pay every 3 months, but it is more of medical concern. I'm holding off on the next shots until early Dec to get me through the holidays. Unfortunately, we need to time our abilities, activities like trips to availability of knee shots. Nonetheless, I keep moving the best I can, and as painful as it may be, I keep walking.

This is a sad question for me to comment on, as I have the same problems. Mine has largely been caused by 25 years of incorrectly, treated Type 3C diabetes. The chronically elevated blood sugar levels have damaged the capillaries in my lower legs that nourish the nerves. I am largely numb from the knee down and through the feet. Because the nerves aren’t firing anymore, the muscle has atrophied and I’m probably down to being able to walk no more than a quarter mile before I have to sit down. Likewise standing for more than a minute or two is very difficult. I’ve had two EMGs confirm the condition. The scary thing is that my HB A1c was never above 6.5. This is why I tell diabetics of any kind to aggressively manage their blood sugar and particularly Type 2 diabetics who have the possibility of completely reversing their diagnosis with lifestyle changes.

Unfortunately, I’ve been told by neurologists that my neuropathy condition is untreatable at this point. I’ve had naturopaths tell me that dosing of B12 and ALA might help, and stupidly. I’m one of those people who is susceptible to hope. None of this stuff worked (including 90 days of trying very expensive lions mane mushroom).

I’ve resisted getting any kind of walker or braces on my legs because I feel like that would be an admission that I’m giving up. Instead, I’ll fight against this for the rest of my life through resistance training and riding my exercise bike every day. I know I’ll not recover the muscle and function of my lower legs, but I’ll do everything I can to stop it from advancing further up my legs past the knee. I also know that once we stop moving, our bodies begin to quickly deteriorate further.

I’m sorry I can’t be more positive about your husband‘s outlook for the future, but I’d surely recommend he find something he can do (like riding an exercise bike). I found physical therapy ineffective mostly because I can do the things they recommend at home.

"I’m so frustrated because I believe I could regain my strength in my lower legs if I had new knees."

Oh boy, @rjack6618, do I relate! My knees, in my estimation, are what stand between me and recovering a modicum of leg strength. I saw my orthopedist a month ago––I was there for his nurse to give me yet another injection––and meeting the doc in the hall asked in passing if, at 80 and with large-fiber neuropathy, I'd "aged out" of knee transplant eligibility. I know I caught him off-guard. He stumbled an answer: "Oh, no, no. We could consider a replacement." Something tells me, if were seriously to discuss the possibility of a replacement and I were to honestly tell him about my balance issues, he might revise his thinking. In the meantime, I'll continue with PT, apologizing to my therapist for not showing more improvement. Oh, these dang knees. 🙂 –Ray (@ray666)

Get 2nd or 3rd opinion. a friend’s dad who was in his 80’s needed a knee replacement. 2 doctors wouldn’t operate on him. She found a Dr that would operate and he did great.