Perhaps, her doctor(s) believe her neuropathy is not diabetic because
it is unilateral and not bilateral as is usually the case.

For type 2 diabetics, improving the insulin sensitivity by using
insulin sensitizers, becoming lean&trim or both does help.

You are welcome, Trish.

All thanks and praises belong to GOD, Whom I love with all my heart,
soul, mind, and strength.

Prayerfully in Christ's amazing love,

Andrew
http://tinyurl.com/jjl29

Trish,

Just briefly Googling IVIG to see what is, I can't understand why it
would be prescribed for diabetic neuropathy. Are you sure that is why
your firend is being given this treatment?

There are only two things that I know of that help with diabetic
neuropathy.  There are other medications, but they all deal with pain,
rather than the cause of the neuropathy, which is nerve damage caused
by high blood sugar.  So the first one is rather obivous--lower the
blood sugar into normal range, preferably, if possible into the lower
part of the normal range. Unless that happens the nerves will continue
to be damaged more  and the effects will worsen. With normal blood
sugar it is possible that some or even all of the damage might reverse
itself. This mostly depends on how soon you catch it--how long the
blood sugar has been out of control and over how long a period.

The other thing that works for some people who try it is an
anti-oxidant known as Alpha Lipoic Acid or Theoctic Acid (same  thing).
This anti-oxidant is both water and fat soluble, and thus able to work
in parts of the body, such as high blood sugar damaged nerve sheathes,
that other anti-oxidants cannot get to. This has been prescribed in
Euorpe for a long time for neuropathy, but is not well-known in the
states. ALA does degrade easily, so it needs to be taken two, or
preferably several times a day, for a total of 6-800 mgs. It can be
found at health food stores and drug stores in the nutritonal section,
with the viatmns and supplements. Reasonably cheap retail at Wal-Mart
or Trader Joe's.

People report mixed results with ALA, especially if blood sugar is not
under optimal control. Kind of like trying to empty a sink--if you open
the drain (ALA), you may be able to empty the sink, but it really helps
if you turn off the faucet first (high blood sguar).  People with
excellent blood sugar control find that ALA can help, and then they can
stop taking it without the recurrrence of symptoms.  People with not
such good blood sugar control may find that the ALA helps but the
symptoms return the moment they stop taking it.

ALA appears to work better in combination with Gamma Lineolic Acid,
which is found in Evening Primorse Oil  EPO can be found in many of the
same places as ALA--Trader Joe's has both, for example.

My experience with ALA has not been conclusive.  My neuropathy was
horribly painful and was why I finally found out I had diabetes. I read
about ALA and took it at the same time that I got my blood sugar down
to normal ranges. My neuropathy went 95% away, I think , because of
both the lowered blood sugar and the ALA.  After a few months, I
stopped taking it with no recurrence of symptoms. So I cannot swear it
was the ALA but think that it helped in my case.

Morris

I can't see how this would help neuropathy either.  Standard treatments for
neuropathy are low doses of antidepressants, but this is not a very
effective treatment.  What does help is keeping BG in range and possibly
Evening Primrose Oil.  It helps me.