α-lipoic Acid Use in Diabetic Neuropathy and Retinopathy Treatment

Wydanie 1/2018
str. 68 – 71

Autorzy: Agnieszka Skowyra, Julita Majszyk-Ionescu, Monika Rogowska, Iwona Grabska-Liberek

Klinika Okulistyki Centrum Medycznego Kształcenia Podyplomowego w Warszawie
SPSK im. prof. W. Orłowskiego w Warszawie
Kierownik: prof. dr hab. n. med. Iwona Grabska-Liberek

Summary: Diabetes is a civilization disease with constantly inreasing number of new patients each year. Chronic hyperglycemia, common to all types of the disease, is associated with damage and dysfunction of many organs, including heart, kidneys, blood vessels and nerves as well as the visual organ. Treatment that reduces blood glucose, although essential and necessary in the treatment of diabetes, does not completely protect against serious complications of the disease, including diabetic neuropathy and retinopathy. Hence the necessity to look for new treatments. The causes leading to the disease are various, nevertheless research from recent years has shown the mechanism of oxidative stress as the main process involved in the pathogenesis of the disease. It is known that it leads to an imbalance between antioxidants and oxidizing compounds in favor of increased activity of the latter. As a consequence, there is an increased production of reactive oxygen species and tissue damage. The α-lipoic acid, a well-known compound with strong antioxidant properties, can counteract the harmful oxidation processes and thus plays a special role in the treatment of diabetes and its complications.
This article presents an up-to-date review of the literature on the role of this acid in the pathogenesis of diabetic complications in the form of neuropathy and retinopathy.

Słowa kluczowe: cukrzyca, neuropatia cukrzycowa (DN), retinopatia cukrzycowa (DR), stres oksydacyjny, kwas α-liponowy (ALA).

Keywords: diabetes, diabetic neuropathy (DN), diabetic retinopathy (DR), oxidative stress, α-lipoic acid (ALA).