Type 2 Diabetes - A Complicated Case of Foot Infection
Osteomyelitis, or bone infection, is one serious complication of diabetes.
Because diabetics frequently have numbness, shooting pains, and pins-and-needles type of pain in their feet - signs of nerve damage or neuropathy, small foot injuries sometimes go unnoticed.
In the year 2007, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, USA, recorded 75,000 hospital discharges in patients with diabetic foot neuropathy, Foot ulcers can become infected if they are not treated promptly.
In 2009 Podiatry Today reported people with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes have a 25 percent risk of developing foot ulcerations over their lifetimes.
According to the CDC, in 2007 there were 113,000 hospital discharges of diabetics with foot ulcers in the United States alone.
More than half of diabetic foot ulcerations become infected.
Of those infections, as many as 65 percent affect the bone.
The poor circulation that frequently accompanies diabetes makes it difficult for white blood cells and antibodies to reach areas where skin is broken.
Diabetes can also make for a poor immune system, leaving diabetics vulnerable to all types of infection, including those of the feet.
In May 2014 the British Medical Journal reported on an unusual but still cautionary case, a foot infection that was not treated as early as it should have been.
The patient was a 66-year-old man with long-standing Type 2 diabetes and neuropathy.
He was admitted to St.
Bartholomew's Hospital in London, UK, with a big toe ulcer that had become infected as far as the underlying bone.
The infection spread through his blood to his right lung and spinal cord.
Fortunately his pneumonia and other infections were taken care of with antibiotics, but the damage to his spinal cord remains.
His legs are quite weak and he is undergoing physical therapy.
Not all foot ulcerations result in severe, life-threatening, debilitating infections, but the above case illustrates the importance of good foot care and hygiene...
You only get one body and one set to work with - don't abuse them.
Because diabetics frequently have numbness, shooting pains, and pins-and-needles type of pain in their feet - signs of nerve damage or neuropathy, small foot injuries sometimes go unnoticed.
In the year 2007, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, USA, recorded 75,000 hospital discharges in patients with diabetic foot neuropathy, Foot ulcers can become infected if they are not treated promptly.
In 2009 Podiatry Today reported people with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes have a 25 percent risk of developing foot ulcerations over their lifetimes.
According to the CDC, in 2007 there were 113,000 hospital discharges of diabetics with foot ulcers in the United States alone.
More than half of diabetic foot ulcerations become infected.
Of those infections, as many as 65 percent affect the bone.
The poor circulation that frequently accompanies diabetes makes it difficult for white blood cells and antibodies to reach areas where skin is broken.
Diabetes can also make for a poor immune system, leaving diabetics vulnerable to all types of infection, including those of the feet.
In May 2014 the British Medical Journal reported on an unusual but still cautionary case, a foot infection that was not treated as early as it should have been.
The patient was a 66-year-old man with long-standing Type 2 diabetes and neuropathy.
He was admitted to St.
Bartholomew's Hospital in London, UK, with a big toe ulcer that had become infected as far as the underlying bone.
The infection spread through his blood to his right lung and spinal cord.
Fortunately his pneumonia and other infections were taken care of with antibiotics, but the damage to his spinal cord remains.
His legs are quite weak and he is undergoing physical therapy.
Not all foot ulcerations result in severe, life-threatening, debilitating infections, but the above case illustrates the importance of good foot care and hygiene...
- look at your feet and toes every day.
Use a hand mirror to help if need be. - wash your feet daily in warm soapy water.
Keep you feet clean, dry, and protected each day. - your skin is your feet's first and best defense against the hazards of the world.
Keep the armour of your feet in good condition by using a daily moisturizer, but don't apply it between the toes. - choose footwear carefully.
Look for comfortable fitting shoes and break in all shoes gradually. - if you must sit for long periods of time, try to move your toes periodically.
You only get one body and one set to work with - don't abuse them.
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