# Diabetic foot care



## Lizzie

This article has some interesting information BUT please do not click if you are squeamish as there is a graphic picture in it. I will reprint the text here for squeamish people;

"'They should have saved my foot'  

By Jane Elliott 
Health reporter, BBC News  

When Anna Levis developed blisters on her feet she was worried, but doctors told her it was simply a case of wearing the wrong shoes.

Anna, who has diabetes, had her wounds treated and dressed. But it was not until after she had part of her foot and her little toe amputated, that she was finally referred to a podiatrist. 

Experts warn that millions are spent each year on diabetic foot amputations like Anna's, but say that most could have been avoided with better foot care. 

New figures show that the NHS spends ?600m a year on treating foot problems in people with diabetes, and ?252m of this is spent on amputation. 

Avoiding amputations
Foot problems commonly develop in people with diabetes, who are at risk of damage to the nerves and blood supply to their feet. 

Both can lead to foot ulcers and slow-healing wounds which, if they become infected, can result in amputation. 

  Whilst it's only a part of my foot that's been amputated, it has affected so much of my life 

Anna Levis 
But Nita Parmar, of the Society of Chiropodists and Podiatrists (SCP), said most serious problems could be avoided with regular access to foot services, rather than simply the annual foot check. 

"Each amputation costs the NHS around ?13,500 with long hospital stays, yet up to 85 per cent of all diabetic amputations can be prevented with specialist podiatrist foot care," she said. 

Diabetes UK's Bridget Turner added: "The longer problems are left untreated, the greater the risk of deterioration and loss of the limb, which has devastating effects on a person's mobility and mood, causing disfigurement and reducing independence." 

Problems can escalate

Anna, who has had Type 1 diabetes since the age of four, said she felt her worries had not been taken seriously. 

When Anna, from Dagenham, developed a blister on each of her feet in 2006 her GP sent her to the surgery chiropodist who dressed her feet and told her to come back in three months. 


Diabetics have to take care of their feet 
But after a few days the blister on her left foot started to worsen and she was sent her to hospital. 

A doctor told her that her blisters had been caused by ill-fitting shoes and she was sent home with a course of antibiotics. 

Four weeks later she became very ill and her right foot began to turn black. She was taken back into hospital and had an emergency amputation of her little toe and of a part of her foot. 

Anna said: "After the operation the hospital diabetes consultant came to see me and said I should never have been left just with the antibiotics. 

"He said that if I had been directed to the diabetes consultant straight after being admitted, my amputation would not have been necessary. 

"It's clear that poor communication and a lack of understanding of diabetes foot care at my hospital led to me losing part of my foot unnecessarily. 

"I am convinced that had I seen the right people at first they would have saved my foot." 

"Whilst it's only a part of my foot that's been amputated, it has affected so much of my life, from having to go to a podiatrist every week to having problems walking, balancing and wearing normal shoes. 

"Things I like doing like swimming I can't do because I can't get the dressing wet. It hinders you in lots of ways. I used to do karate, but I can't do that. You can't risk hurting your foot in any way - a simple scratch could turn into something nasty." 

Let down

Anna, 38, says she feels let down by the system. 

"They say diabetics should take more notice, but you are making a pain of yourself going to the doctor," she said. 

"I had my annual foot check, but I do not think that is good enough because infection can take hold and you are really stuck. 

"When you are a child you have an appointment with the diabetic clinic every couple of months and a health visitor comes to see you, but when you reach 18 all that stops." "

Here is the original link: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/8106710.stm


----------



## Northerner

Thank you for posting that Lizzie - it's a good remider for us to pay special attention to our feet, and also should there be a problem to insist on seeing the relevantly qualified people. In a way I find it encouraging to know that so many amputations can be avoided as long as you get the right treatment (although I accept that that is sometimes a lottery)


----------



## Proudspirit

Crikey, hope that my Podiatrist apt comes through soon!


----------



## katie

oh noo, now im scared of this aswell as my sight.


----------



## Steff

thanks for that interesting post lizzie x


----------



## Lorraine

I have  a blister, corn, don't know what it is on a toe and everytime I mention it to the woman who puts that thing that twangs and vibrates on my foot I am told its nothing.  Its been there a few years and no amount of cream softens it.  But if nobody listens to me what am I to do.


----------



## Lizzie

Lorraine said:


> I have  a blister, corn, don't know what it is on a toe and everytime I mention it to the woman who puts that thing that twangs and vibrates on my foot I am told its nothing.  Its been there a few years and no amount of cream softens it.  But if nobody listens to me what am I to do.



Hi Lorraine

Who is this woman? Is she a nurse, doctor or a foot specialist? If she is not a foot specialist I would go to one and ask their advice, if she is ask another one since she doesn't seem very good and doesn't listen to the concerns of the patient. Usually for me it is a doctor or nurse who does the twangy thing. There is usually a foot section in the diabetic clinic, or there are foot care centres which are separate. You can find the centres by asking your doctor.

I think feet in general are not taken care of, thats why I posted this. The only thing I have is the twangy thing once a year at annual review. In between times there is nothing, even at annual review my feet are not looked at by a specialist in the way my eyes are, and are not even looked at in detail, just a few twangs and thats it.


----------



## Lorraine

Lizzie said:


> Hi Lorraine
> 
> Who is this woman? Is she a nurse, doctor or a foot specialist? If she is not a foot specialist I would go to one and ask their advice, if she is ask another one since she doesn't seem very good and doesn't listen to the concerns of the patient. Usually for me it is a doctor or nurse who does the twangy thing. There is usually a foot section in the diabetic clinic, or there are foot care centres which are separate. You can find the centres by asking your doctor.
> 
> I think feet in general are not taken care of, thats why I posted this. The only thing I have is the twangy thing once a year at annual review. In between times there is nothing, even at annual review my feet are not looked at by a specialist in the way my eyes are, and are not even looked at in detail, just a few twangs and thats it.



Hi Lizzie, she is a nurse who checks my feet, but doesn't listen to my concerns.  I have the twangy thing and ultrasound on my feet and i was given a free tube of moisturser once, wahoo!


----------



## Northerner

Lorraine said:


> Hi Lizzie, she is a nurse who checks my feet, but doesn't listen to my concerns.  I have the twangy thing and ultrasound on my feet and i was given a free tube of moisturser once, wahoo!



Hi Lorraine, there may be a podiatry service attached to your local hospital - try and find out who and where they are and register with them. Last year I got my feet checked by the practise nurse at my surgery, but my DSN recommended that I register with the podiatry service as they are the real experts. I had some problems with my toes over the winter and when I saw the podiatrist she said it was chilblains - which I've never had in my life before! I did feel confident when I came away from the appointment that my feet had been properly checked out and I had been listened to. They would be able to tell you what to do about the blister/corn, as you can't use the normal corn plasters etc.


----------



## Lorraine

Northerner, why can't i use corn plasters?


----------



## Northerner

Lorraine said:


> Northerner, why can't i use corn plasters?



Corn plasters have acids in them that can cause more harm than good, especially to a diabetic's feet as we are often slower to heal. Not sure what other treatments there are, but I wouldn't attempt to treat anything on my feet by myself now.


----------

