Living with diabetes is not easy. The complications associated with diabetes are more hazardous than diabetes itself. On one hand, this disorder is affecting your stomach and kidneys, on the other hand, they are deteriorating your eyes and feet. High blood sugar levels in diabetic patients affect the whole body in different ways. And the patient’s feet are more prone to problems.
The two main problems that occur in patients are diabetic neuropathy and peripheral vascular disease. Uncontrolled sugar levels lead to these problems. And if left untreated, the complications may lead to foot amputation. 50 percent of foot amputations in the U.S are due to diabetes. That’s why it is important to take care of your feet when you have diabetes. You can ask your doctor for your feet check-up. Consult the best diabetologist in Lahore, through Marham.
Foot problems due to diabetes:
The main two problems mentioned above are;
Diabetic Neuropathy:
With the passage of time, diabetic patients face nerve damage especially in peripheral body parts like legs and feet. This leads to loss of sensation in those body parts. In this way, the diabetic patient can’t feel soreness, irritation, etc. on their feet. They can’t detect the pressure on their feet in shoes and hence, rubbing can cause soreness and blisters. If not treated properly, these blisters can turn into serious infection and gangrene. Gangrene means the death of body tissues due to lack of blood supply or due to infection.
And after gangrene, the patient may need foot amputation to resolve the problem.
Peripheral vascular disease:
Fats deposits in blood vessels and changes in blood vessels due to diabetes, the flow of blood is blocked. This leads to less blood supply to peripheral body parts like feet and legs. The chances of infections arise, and gangrene also occurs. This is known as peripheral vascular disease.
Symptoms of foot problems due to diabetes:
There are some common symptoms that can be seen in diabetic patients with foot problems. For example;
- Intermittent claudication
- Pain at rest
- Numbness or tingling in legs and feet
- A weakness of the calf muscle
- Coldness in the legs or feet
- loss of feeling
- Painless blisters and rashes
- skin discoloration
- wounds with or without drainage
- painful tingling
- discoloration of nails
- ulcers and infections (fungal skin and nail)
How to prevent these problems?
The first and foremost thing is to control your sugar levels. Follow the instructions given by your doctor to give the best foot care. You can also consult a foot doctor who is known as a podiatrist, for a foot care plan.
This care plan includes;
- check your feet daily for problems like
- soreness, fluid-filled blisters, etc
- abnormal growth and discoloration of toenails
- spots and rashes
- any growth and signs of infections
- Wash your feet every day with warm water
- Do not let dryness to occur on your foot skin
- Do gentle scrubbing of your feet
- Wear socks and comfortable shoes
- Don’t keep your feet covered during humid weather
- Keep the blood flowing in your feet
- Do not walk bare-footed
Treatment of foot problems due to diabetes:
There are 2 basic treatments, one is non-surgical, and the other is surgical. In non-surgical treatment;
- Doctors clean the wounds and do dressing
- Immobilization devices are used to keep the foot safe
Surgical treatments include;
- Removal of dead or decaying tissue
- Amputation of the single toe, or foot or leg
- Arterial bypass to assist the blood in a specific body part
- Placing stents in blood vessels to facilitate blood flow.
Apart from all of this, you need proper guidance and knowledge about diabetes and complications due to it. You can consult the best diabetologist in Lahore through Marham.
And during this pandemic, if you are unwilling to visit your doctor, you can now consult online the best health specialists of Pakistan through Marham. Download the mobile app or visit the website to find and consult the best doctors in Pakistan.
