Diabetic neuropathy is nerve damage caused by prolonged high blood sugar and affects more than half of people with long-standing diabetes, causing pain, numbness, and loss of sensation — particularly in the feet. It remains one of the most common complications of diabetes and has few effective treatments beyond pain management.
What's actually going on in research
SGLT2 inhibitors and GLP-1 agonists are being studied for neuropathy prevention and progression, as evidence grows that these drugs protect nerves beyond their glucose-lowering effects. Drugs targeting the aldose reductase pathway, oxidative stress, and advanced glycation end products — which damage nerves through high glucose — are in trials. Pain management trials are testing newer non-opioid agents including sodium channel blockers and anti-CGRP drugs.
Metabolic neuroprotection
SGLT2 inhibitors and GLP-1 agonists may reduce neuropathy progression through anti-inflammatory and metabolic effects beyond blood sugar control, and dedicated neuropathy trials are underway.
Aldose reductase and AGE inhibitors
Drugs blocking pathways where excess glucose damages nerve fibers — including aldose reductase inhibitors and AGE breakers — are in trials targeting the root cause rather than just symptoms.
Novel pain therapy
Sodium channel blockers targeting Nav1.7 and Nav1.8, which carry pain signals in damaged nerves, are in trials for painful diabetic neuropathy as non-opioid alternatives.
What to know before you search
Eligibility requires confirmed diabetic neuropathy diagnosis, specific pain scores for pain trials, duration of diabetes, and current glycemic control levels.
What types of trials are currently open
- Neuroprotective drug trials — Testing agents to prevent or slow diabetic nerve damage progression.
- Pain management trials — Evaluating new non-opioid analgesics for painful diabetic neuropathy symptoms.
- Device trials — Testing spinal cord stimulators and transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation for neuropathic pain.
- Lifestyle trials — Evaluating exercise, glycemic control optimization, and weight loss effects on neuropathy outcomes.
- Observational studies — Tracking nerve function markers to identify early neuropathy and predict progression.
Recently added Diabetic Neuropathy trials
Effect of GLP-1RA on Cardiac Autonomic Neuropathy in Type 2 Diabetes
This study aims to investigate whether a class of diabetes medications called GLP-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RA), specifically semaglutide or polyethylene glycol loxenatide, can improve heart-related nerve damage in people with type 2 diabetes. This heart-related nerve damage is known as diabetic cardiac autonomic neuropathy (DCAN), which can cause problems such as fast resting heart rate, low blood pressure upon standing, and in severe cases, heart attack or sudden death. In this study, 60 adults with type 2 diabetes (ages 18-80) will be randomly divided into two groups. One group will receive standard diabetes care only, while the other group will receive standard care plus a once-weekly injection of either semaglutide or polyethylene glycol loxenatide for 6 months. Participants will undergo tests before and after the treatment period, including blood tests and non-invasive heart function tests (24-hour heart rate variability monitoring and cardiac autonomic reflex tests). The main goal is to see whether GLP-1RA treatment improves heart rate variability, a key sign of heart nerve function. The study also looks at changes in body weight, blood sugar control, and insulin resistance. This research may help determine whether GLP-1RA medications can protect against or improve diabetic heart nerve damage, beyond their known benefits for blood sugar control.
PAW-Hydrogel for Chronic Wound Healing
The goal of this randomized controlled trial is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of a novel hydrogel made of Carbopol® 940 functionalized with Plasma-Activated Water (PAW) in patients with chronic wounds (diabetic foot ulcers, pressure injuries, dehiscent wounds, arterial and venous ulcers). The main questions it aims to answer are: * Does PAW-hydrogel accelerate wound closure (reduction in surface area) compared to standard advanced wound care? * Does PAW-hydrogel reduce bacterial load in the wound bed? * Is PAW-hydrogel safe and well-tolerated (local adverse events, pain)? Participants will be randomly assigned to one of two groups: * Experimental group: Topical application of PAW-hydrogel (Carbopol® 940 neutralized to pH 5.5, loaded with reactive oxygen and nitrogen species from plasma activation) 2-3 times per week. * Control group: Standard advanced wound care (cleaning, debridement, conventional dressings). Wound area (planimetry), bacterial load (semi-quantitative cultures), pain (Visual Analog Scale), tissue quality (Bates-Jensen scale), and adverse events will be assessed over a 12-week follow-up period.
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