Glycosylated hemoglobin concentrations in patients with diabetic neuropathy.

Glycosylated hemoglobin (Hb) concentrations were measured in 50 patients with clinically significant diabetic neuropathy. There were 24 males and 26 females with a mean age of 58.1 years and a mean duration of diabetes of 8.9 years. The glycosylated Hb concentration was not significantly different in these patients (13.9% +/- 2.4 SD) compared with randomly selected diabetic patients matched for age (+/- 5 years), sex and therapy without clinical evidence of neuropathy (13.6% +/- 2.2). There was no significant difference in the duration of diabetes between the two groups. The results would suggest that factors other than the degree of control of diabetes are important in the pathogenesis of diabetic neuropathy.