Key clinical point: Cerebral bioenergetic alterations may play a key role in the generation and maintenance of pain in painful diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN).

Major finding: A greater ratio of adenosine triphosphate to phosphocreatine was observed in the somatosensory cortex and right thalamus in persons with type 2 diabetes and painful DPN versus those without DPN and versus healthy volunteers.

Study details: A United Kingdom–based prospective study that used phosphorus magnetic resonance spectroscopy to study potential cerebral mechanisms of neuropathic pain in persons with type 2 diabetes with (n = 32) and without (n = 11) peripheral neuropathy versus healthy volunteers (n = 12).

Disclosures: The study received no commercial funding. The study investigators had no conflicts of interest to disclose.