Evidence mapPaperPMID 40777713Full record

ArticleCureus2025

Vitamin B12 Deficiency in Patients With Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy: A Hospital-Based Cross-Sectional Study.

Tariq Hayat, Ramshaw Waqar, Salman Farsi, Sakhawat Ali, Muhammad Asim, Umar Farooq

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Article in Cureus, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

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4citing papers in PubMed
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4 citing papers in PubMed.

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Tariq HayatAcute Internal Medicine, Lady Reading Hospital Peshawar, Peshawar, PAK.
Ramshaw WaqarAcute Internal Medicine, Russells Hall Hospital, Dudley, GBR.
Salman FarsiGeneral Medicine, Ayub Teaching Hospital, Abbottabad, PAK.
Sakhawat AliMedicine, Ayub Medical College, Abbottabad, PAK.
Muhammad AsimMedicine, Ayub Medical College, Abbottabad, PAK.
Umar FarooqMedicine, Lady Reading Hospital Peshawar, Peshawar, PAK.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background Diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) is a serious but potentially preventable complication of diabetes mellitus, particularly in individuals with vitamin B12 deficiency. Despite clinical guidelines, routine B12 screening remains inconsistent, and hospital-based data on deficiency patterns in DPN populations are scarce. This study evaluated the frequency and determinants of B12 deficiency among patients with DPN at a tertiary care center in Pakistan. Materials and methods We conducted a hospital-based cross-sectional study on 139 patients (ages 30-60 years old) with type 2 diabetes and confirmed DPN (Michigan Neuropathy Screening Instrument score ≥4) at Lady Reading Hospital, Peshawar (August 2022-March 2025). Patients taking prior B12 supplementation or with malabsorption disorders were excluded. We measured the serum B12 levels, defining the deficiency as less than 149 ng/L. We used a multivariable logistic regression model to identify the predictors of B12 deficiency, adjusting for age, gender, and diabetes duration. Results Vitamin B12 deficiency was prevalent in 48.2% (67/139) of participants. Moreover, it was significantly higher in older patients (54.7% in the 46-60 age group vs. 13.6% in the 30-45 age group, p < 0.001) and those with longer durations of diabetes (72.8% with >5 years vs. 13.8% with 1-5 years, p < 0.001). There was no statistically significant difference among genders (50.5% males vs. 42.9% females, p = 0.38). Analysis showed that being over 45 years old and having diabetes for more than 5 years are strong factors that predict vitamin B12 deficiency. Conclusions This study demonstrates a high burden of vitamin B12 deficiency among patients with DPN, which is strongly associated with age and duration of diabetes. Implementation of routine B12 screening protocols for patients with DPN, particularly those of old age or with prolonged duration of diabetes, may help prevent neurological deterioration in this vulnerable population.

Indexed as

cobalamindiabetes complicationsdiabetes mellitusdiabetic neuropathynutritional deficiency

Identifiers

PMID40777713
PMCPMC12329157

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.