Clinical and electromyographic findings in 27 diabetics with proximal lower extremity weakness were analyzed. Two groups could be distinguished: patients in whom electromyographic findings were restricted to the clinically involved parts of the lower extremity (group A) and those in whom an associated distal symmetric, peripheral neuropathy could be proved on clinical and electromyographic grounds (group B). Patients in group B had significantly greater incidence of the following features: gradual onset of symptoms, bilateral proximal lower extremity weakness, insulin dependency, recent weight loss, EMG evidence of bilateral disease and paraspinal fibrillations. These findings concur with recent reports describing heterogeneity in the syndrome of "diabetic proximal neuropathy".