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Diabetic foot ulcer is a breakdown of the skin and sometimes deeper tissues of the foot that leads to sore formation. It is thought to occur due to abnormal pressure or mechanical stress chronically applied to the foot, usually with concomitant predisposing conditions such as peripheral sensory neuropathy, peripheral motor neuropathy, autonomic neuropathy or peripheral arterial disease. [1]
Diabetic foot infection is any infection of the foot in a diabetic person. [2] The most frequent cause of hospitalization for diabetic patients is due to foot infections. [ 3 ] Symptoms may include pus from a wound, redness, swelling, pain, warmth, tachycardia , or tachypnea. [ 4 ]
Diabetic foot conditions can be acute or chronic complications of diabetes. [1] Presence of several characteristic diabetic foot pathologies such as infection, diabetic foot ulcer and neuropathic osteoarthropathy is called diabetic foot syndrome. The resulting bone deformity is known as Charcot foot.
Diabetes is the foremost cause in America today for neuropathic joint disease, [4] and the foot is the most affected region. In those with foot deformity, approximately 60% are in the tarsometatarsal joints (medial joints affected more than lateral), 30% metatarsophalangeal joints , and 10% have ankle disease.
Foot of an 80-year old individual with type 2 diabetes and heart failure. The second toe has a large ischaemic ulcer. The first toe has a small one. The prevalence of arterial insufficiency ulcers among people with Diabetes is high due to decreased blood flow caused by the thinning of arteries and the lack of sensation due to diabetic neuropathy.
Other causes producing skin ulcers include bacterial and viral infections, fungal infections [6] and cancers. Blood disorders and chronic wounds can result in skin ulcers as well. [7] Venous leg ulcers due to impaired circulation or a blood flow disorder are more common in the elderly.
Chronic wound pain is a condition described as unremitting, disabling, and recalcitrant pain experienced by individuals with various types of chronic wounds. [1] Chronic wounds such as venous leg ulcers, arterial ulcers, diabetic foot ulcers, pressure ulcers, and malignant wounds can have an enormous impact on an individual’s quality of life with pain being one of the most distressing symptoms.
A wound is any disruption of or damage to living tissue, such as skin, mucous membranes, or organs. [1] [2] Wounds can either be the sudden result of direct trauma (mechanical, thermal, chemical), or can develop slowly over time due to underlying disease processes such as diabetes mellitus, venous/arterial insufficiency, or immunologic disease. [3]