Obstetric Neuropathy in Diabetic Patients: The “Double Hit Hypothesis”

The two-hit model has been proposed to explain the effects of diabetes on mothers who are already in a putative subclinical damaged state and then undergo neuronal damage during the delivery process. However, the anatomical and pathophysiological mechanisms are not well understood. Our overarching hypothesis in this review paper is that pregnant women who are diabetic have a damaged peripheral nervous system, constituting the “first hit” hypothesis. The delivery process itself—the “second hit”—can produce neurological damage to the mother. Women with diabetes mellitus (DM) are at risk for neurological damage during both hits, but the cumulative effects of both “hits” pose a greater risk of neurological damage and pathophysiological changes during delivery. In our analysis, we introduce the different steps of our concept paper. Subsequently, we describe each of the topics. First, we outline the mechanisms by which diabetes acts as a detrimental variable in neuropathy by focusing on the most common form of diabetic neuropathy, diabetic distal symmetrical polyneuropathy, also known as distal sensorimotor neuropathy. The possible role of macrosomia in causing diabetic neuropathy and obstetric neurological injury is discussed. Second, we describe how vaginal delivery can cause various obstetrical neurological syndromes and pathophysiological changes. Third, we highlight the risk of obstetric neuropathy and discuss anatomical sites at which lesions may occur, including lesions during delivery. Fourth, we characterize the pathophysiological pathways involved in the causation of diabetic neuropathy. Finally, we highlight diabetic damage to sensory vs. motor nerves, including how hyperglycemia causes different types of damage depending on the location of nerve cell bodies.