Small Fiber Neuropathy

Small fiber peripheral neuropathy is a type of peripheral neuropathy. It is also called small fiber neuropathy, small fiber sensory neuropathy (SFSN), and C fiber neuropathy. Small nerve fibers are the nerve fibers near the skin's surface, which is why the symptoms deal with sensation. Usually the symptoms start in the feet and lower legs.

Until relatively recently, this has been a disorder diagnosed mainly by excluding other possibilities. Electromyography (EMG ), a test which is good at diagnosing most forms of neuropathy, is normal is people with small fiber neuropathies. Currently, the small nerve fibers in the skin can be analyzed by means of a simple procedure called skin biopsy. Sometimes the disorder is caused by diabetes, but, in many patients, no specific cause is identified and the syndrome is termed “idiopathic.”