Reliability and validity of a point-of-care sural nerve conduction device for identification of diabetic neuropathy

Abstract

Background: Confirmation of diabetic sensorimotor polyneuropathy (DSP) relies on standard nerve conduction studies (NCS) performed in specialized clinics. We explored the utility of a point-of-care device (POCD) for DSP detection by nontechnical personnel and a validation of diagnostic thresholds with those observed in a normative database. Research Design and Methods: 44 subjects with type 1 and type 2 diabetes underwent standard NCS (reference method). Two nontechnical examiners measured sural nerve amplitude potential (SNAP) and conduction velocity (SNCV) using the POCD. Reliability was determined by intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC [2,1]). Validity was determined by Bland-Altman analysis and receiver operating characteristic curves. Results: The 44 subjects (50% female) with mean age 56±18 years had mean SNAP and SNCV of 8.0±8.6 μV and 41.5±8.2 m/s using standard NCS and 8.0±8.2 μV and 49.9±11.1 m/s using the POCD. Intrarater reproducibility ICC values were 0.97 for SNAP and 0.94 for SNCV while interrater reproducibility values were 0.83 and 0.79, respectively. Mean bias of the POCD was -0.1±3.6 μV for SNAP and +8.4±6.4 m/s for SNCV. A SNAP of ≤6 μV had 88% sensitivity and 94% specificity for identifying age-and height-standardized reference NCS values, while a SNCV of ≤48 m/s had 94% specificity and 82% sensitivity. Abnormality in one or more of these thresholds was associated with 95% sensitivity and 71% specificity for identification of DSP according to electrophysiological criteria. Conclusions: The POCD demonstrated excellent reliability and acceptable accuracy. Threshold values for DSP identification validated those of published POCD normative values. We emphasize the presence of measurement bias - particularly for SNCV - that requires adjustment of threshold values to reflect those of standard NCS. © 2014 Lee et al.