NEURO TOUCH Device Integration with Nerve Conduction Study and Quantitative Sensory Testing for Early Detection of Neuropathy in Leprosy Patients

Background: Leprosy, a chronic infectious disease, is one of the common causes of peripheral neuropathy worldwide. Early preclinical nerve damage can be detected by quantitative sensory test (QST), which is easy, user-friendly, cost-effective, and portable compared to nerve conduction study (NCS). The NEURO TOUCH biothesiometer, a novel QST device, offers additional precision and portability for early detection. Objectives: To correlate the quantitative sensory functions in patients with leprosy of varying durations by comparing NCS results with NEURO TOUCH biothesiometer/QST findings. Materials and Methods: Thirty-two newly diagnosed leprosy patients were included in this cross-sectional study. Demographic parameters with a mean age of 34.2 ± 6.7 years were recorded. NCSs were performed for various upper and lower limb nerves using standard NCS apparatus. Quantitative sensory testing with the NEURO TOUCH biothesiometer involved five tests: cold perception, hot perception, tactile sensation, vibration perception, and temperature. Results: Data were analyzed using R software version 4.4.3 and SPSS 21.0. The risk in quantitative sensory testing was found to be 65.6% (confidence interval: 0.496–0.816). QST parameters – cold perception (81.81%), vibration perception (63.63%), tactile perception (58.3%), and skin temperature (33.3%) – were significantly altered in patients with abnormal NCS results. However, as patients were studied at a single time point, no statistically significant alterations were observed across different disease durations, with only two patients having >24-month duration. Conclusion: The present study suggests that portable quantitative sensory testing using the NEURO TOUCH biothesiometer may be employed to diagnose early nerve function impairment in leprosy patients more effectively than NCSs. This becomes important in preventing further complications and highlights the role of novel, accessible diagnostic tools in leprosy management.