Evoked Potential Studies in Patients with Chronic Renal Failure

Subclinical involvement of the nervous system in uremic adults has been detected by certain neurophysiological techniques. These techniques have been employed in clinical nephrology to record abnormalities of nervous conduction in central pathways. The electrical monitoring of the central nervous system has allowed the detection of uremic neural injury, the diagnosis of specific electrophysiological abnormalities, the evaluation of various treatments employed and the identification of those abnormalities that uremia can include. The present study aimed to assess subclinical involvement of the central nervous system in patients with different degrees of chronic renal dysfunction. Quantification of the neurologic abnormalities has been attempted by MMSE and electrophysiological measures which included pattern VEPs, BAEPs and P300.This Quantification should help shed some light on Evoked Potentials as bedside, non-invasive, reliable and adequately sensitive procedures that can be used for the investigation and follow up of subclinical involvement of the CNS in chronic renal failure patients, and should be especially useful to professionals in Neurology, Neurophysiology and Nephrology