Cause of Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy (CIDP)

Area of demyelination has had myelin stripped off (Click to see larger image)

CIDP is caused by a person’s immune system. The immune system is supposed to fight off bacteria and viruses, but in some people their immune system may start to attack their own body.  In CIDP the immune system starts to attack the insulation around the nerves, which is called myelin. Hence the neuropathy received the name demyelinating.  As the myelin around the nerves is damaged, the ability of the nerves to conduct electricity worsens. Frequently patients will recall a preceding viral infections a few weeks before the onset of their nerve disease.  In some cases we can identify specific antibodies in a patient’s blood which will allow us to classify the CIDP more specifically. We also believe that CIDP may be more common in certain other disease such as diabetes and some forms of cancer.