- diabetic thoracic r. a type of diabetic neuropathy that affects primarily elderly patients with diabetes mellitus; clinically characterized by thoracic or abdominal pain, mainly anterior, but sometimes with radiation around the trunk from the midline; usually unilateral; may extend over several segments; probably due to ischemic injury of two or more contiguous roots; one type of diabetic polyradiculopathy.
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ra·dic·u·lop·a·thy (rə-dik″u-lopґə-the) disease of the nerve roots, such as from inflammation or impingement by a tumor or a bony spur.Medical dictionary. 2011.