With summer just around the corner, accompanied by open-toed shoes and a longing to go barefoot, a greater emphasis is placed on foot care. You should pay special attention to your feet all year, especially the more than 24 million Americans living with diabetes.
Foot inspections and proper foot care should be as much a part of a diabetic's daily routine as checking blood sugar levels. Each year one in 20 people with diabetes will develop a foot ulcer and the rate of amputation for people with diabetes is 10 times higher than in the general population. In fact, 60 percent of lower limb amputations that are not caused by trauma such as accidents and car crashes are diabetes related.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention has found that comprehensive foot care programs can reduce amputation rates by 45 to 85 percent. The local experts at the Wound Healing Center at Marion Regional Healthcare System, a National Healing Corporation Wound Healing Center, recommend these foot care tips:
- A daily visual inspection is needed since diabetes can cause changes in the skin on the feet as well as nerve damage that can impair sensation of feeling. Use an unbreakable mirror to see the bottom of your feet or ask someone to help you.
- Check your feet and between your toes for blisters, cuts and scratches.
- Have your feet examined during doctor visits and tell your doctor about any redness, blisters or wounds on your legs or feet.
- Don’t pull loose pieces of skin off your feet. See a health care professional to have them removed. - Avoid crossing your legs: this can cause pressure on the nerves and blood vessels, possibly causing
damage.
- Never go barefoot and always wear properly fitting socks made of cotton and wool. Change your socks daily and your shoes twice a day. - Cut toenails straight across and don't trim them too short. Use an emery board to smooth corners of toenails or ingrown nails.
- Seek medical treatment if a leg or foot wound has not healed in 30 days or shows signs of infection such as increased pain, redness or swelling, foul wound odor or a change in color or amount of drainage from the wound.
For information about diabetes management and treating and preventing chronic wounds, call The Wound Healing Center at Marion Regional Healthcare System, (843) 431-CARE.
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