the basics as other than painkillers. THEY were taught there's not much else that can be done. Younger docs or neurologists who specialize in neuropathies are usually clustered in metro areas near research or teaching hospitals...
Doc who just lump it all into Ideopathic usually deal with only diabetic or alcoholic neuropathies, PERIOD. Some even decide that if you've ever had a drink in your life it's alcoholic. Write those guys off. Second opinions are good for this, it may be that your original doc is lazy or simply doesn't know about PN and what can be done. That second opinion, preferabley at a top research hospital, will probably come with a slew of tests to do and an initial diagnosis that will spur your doc/neuro/gp into action--nothing like a bit of peer pressure.
As for getting your mind-boggled, web up
www.neuro.wustl/edu/neuromuscular/alfindex/htm and start reading about the world of neuropathies. scrool down to the 's-es' for the sensory neuropathies and then read some of the 'stickies' at the top of this forum. There's lots of good stuff there. In the stickies there's also a post on the different meds that have been used for PN -some stuff works for some and is horrid to others...We are each unique overall.
It's far more important to get a diagnosis that's in the correct neighborhood for your set of PN issues, then get an appropriate treatment than it is to find the
CAUSE. My case as example, the ER doc had found PN in the 'net' to diagnose me, but what was the first one he'd found? Alcoholic, so the referred neuro never looked further [no longer MY neuro]...it turned out to be auto-immune, found out only after that second opinion and a further opinion at a teaching hospital. Were it not for those other opinions, I would probably be totally full-body numb and in a wheelchair. This was all before I'd access to the internet, finding all the folks here helped me confirm that my own instincts were right. So, read learn, plug away and you WILL find the treatments you need! Pain free moments for all today! - j