Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy: a 6-year retrospective clinical study of a hospital-based population.

We reviewed the clinical, electrophysiological, laboratory and neuroimaging features of 25 patients with chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) admitted to Aeginition Hospital from 1996 to 2001. We also investigated the response to several treatment modalities. The aim was to reveal the clinical spectrum of the disease; the diagnostic criteria developed by the Ad Hoc Subcommittee of the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) in 1991 were used. The subjects consisted of 17 men (68%) and eight women (32%) aged 18-81 years (mean age: 48.5 years) with CIDP. Eighteen patients (72%) had a symmetric neuropathy, whereas seven (28%) had an asymmetric neuropathy. Two patients (8%) had a pure sensory neuropathy. Nine (36%) presented with cranial nerve involvement and only one (4%) had central nervous system demyelination. Most patients had a satisfactory response after treatment with corticosteroids, intravenous immunoglobulins, plasma exchange and azathioprine. In conclusion, CIDP is a clinically heterogeneous disorder. It is one of the few serious chronic neuropathies that has a good (although not permanent) treatment response.