Background Painful diabetic neuropathy (DPN) is common in patients with long-standing diabetes mellitus. The prevalence of neuropathy approaches 50% in those with diabetes for 25 years. Among patients with neuropathy, 11.6% with type 1 diabetes and 32.1% with type 2 diabetes have neuropathic pain. In our recent observational study of a large cohort of diabetic patients from primary care in northwest England (n = 15,692), painful diabetic neuropathy (PDN), assessed using the neuropathy symptom score (NSS) and neuropathy disability score (NDS) (NSS >/=5 and NDS >/=3) was 21%, and the prevalence of painful symptoms (NSS >/=5) was 34%. Despite less neuropathy in South Asians (14%) compared to Europeans (22%) (P < 0.0001), painful symptoms were greater in South Asians (38 vs. 32%, P < 0.0001) and they maintained a 50% increased risk of painful neuropathy symptoms (P < 0.0001).