Small Fiber Painful Axonal Neuropathy Profile

My neurologist has ordered the following test: Small Fiber Painful Axonal Neuropathy Profile.  My questions follow:

1. Is Athena Diagnostics (Worcester, MA) the ONLY diagnostic lab that can perform this test?
2. If Athena is NOT the only lab that can perform this test, who else can do it? (I live in Charleston, SC)
3. May I use my insurance's blood lab (Quest Diagnostics) to have the blood drawn and forwarded to a "certified" diagnostic lab for this Profile?
4. Can you provide an estimate for the cost of this Profile? (I have insurance, but nobody can tell me my out-of-pocket expenses for this Profile prior to having it done).

COMMENT: I have negative EMG, negative Nerve Conduction Study, negative diabetes. Pain/parathesia on my feet has progressed from a nuisance to absolutely unbearable in three years. Now, I have the symptoms developing on tips of my fingers.

THANKS!

[Hope75]

I, too, have the aweful burning foot pain.  Check my profile.  Interesting you had back surgery - I have scoliosis and some "abnormalities" but they didn't suggest it was my back causing the pain, just neuropathy.  Take care!

[anneaki]

i had major back surgery oct 2007. i received free fragments after a injection of steriods for severe chronic back pain the only option my medical provider gave after trying all the other medications that did.nt help with the horrible pain i was dealing with before surgery. i also had a ruptured disc and nerve compression for six months. finally i had to find another physician that would help me. my surgeon had to cut any some of my spinal column to get to the free fragments. he did a decompression and removed the ruptured disc the pain is sometimes unbearable like today. i recently started feeling the burning on right foot involving the first three toes. i week ago i noticed my fingers on my left hand began to tingle and loose sensation and awful arm and neck pain
i am afraid because last week i was holding a bottle in my left hand and it would not loosen its grip on the can i had to pry with all my might to get my left index finger back into a straigtened position