A surgeon can remove the damaged section and directly reconnect healthy nerve endings. This is known as nerve repair. Or the surgeon may implant a portion of nerve from another part of the body to close a space between the nerves. This is known as a nerve graft.
Depending on the severity of the injury, treatment routes vary greatly. If the nerve is only injured, you may recover over time without surgery. Nerves heal slowly, sometimes over many months. For these minor nerve injuries, nonsurgical treatment options include medication, physical therapy, or massage.
Peripheral nerve surgery can rebuild or repair damaged nerves. You may need surgery to repair very compressed nerves, to cut nerves, or nerves that don't heal on their own. After surgery, nerves begin to grow every day, at a rate of 1 mm per day, or 1 inch per month in a healthy 25-year-old. If you are older, they grow back at a slower rate.
If the nerves haven't been cut, they take about six to 12 months to heal. Treatment for peripheral neuropathy may include treatment of any underlying cause or symptom. Treatment may be more successful for certain underlying causes. For example, ensuring that diabetes is well controlled can help improve neuropathy or, at least, prevent it from worsening.
Some nerve injuries respond well to medications and other treatments to relieve pain. We may prescribe medications in the form of pills, creams, injections (injections), or patches. Your provider will discuss what types of medications may work for you and how you'll take them. The most common cause of nerve damage in the legs and feet is due to diabetes, also called diabetic neuropathy. Nerve damage throughout the body can also be caused by accidents, sports and work-related injuries, and lacerations that stretch, compress, or cut these nerves.
Recovery is a slow process, and the most important thing you can do to regain nerve sensitivity and function is to move constantly. According to the American Diabetes Association, about half of people with diabetes have some type of nerve damage. By participating in physical therapy, as well as in everyday exercise and movements, you force your nerves to fill in the gaps and complete tasks. And the damage caused by these things can stop nerves from talking to the brain and sending signals to the body. Peripheral nerves control the body's internal environment, sensations, voluntary and involuntary movements, and spinal cord reflexes, as well as the memory and learning of muscles and tendons.
