Diabetic people are prone to foot ulcers

As you know, poor control of glycemic control can lead to chronic diabetes which is a high level of blood sugar in your body. Now, diabetes can cause other complications in your body and one of the most common problems due to diabetes is foot ulcers. It means that people who are diabetic are more prone to catch foot ulcers from any injury or infection which becomes extremely detrimental to your leg and health, later. This initiates because of deficient glycemic control underlying neuropathy, peripheral vascular disease, or poor foot care. It is also one of the common causes of osteomyelitis of the foot and amputation of the lower extremities. These ulcers are usually in the areas of the foot that encounter repetitive trauma and pressure sensations. Staphylococcus is the most common infective organism. 

The management of this is essential because if not addressed adequately then it can lead to separating the wounded leg from your body in order to stop the spreading ulcers. The following are some contributing reasons for lower extremity amputation - 

• Peripheral arterial occlusive disease 

The peripheral arterial occlusive disease is four times more prevalent in diabetics than in non-diabetics. The arterial occlusion typically involves the tibial and peroneal arteries but spares the dorsalis pedis artery. Smoking, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia commonly contribute to the increased prevalence of peripheral arterial occlusive disease in diabetics. The presence of lower extremity ischemia is suggested by a combination of clinical signs and symptoms plus abnormal results on noninvasive vascular tests. Signs and symptoms may include claudication, pain occurring in the arch or forefoot at rest or during the night, absent popliteal or posterior tibial pulses, thinned or shiny skin, absence of hair on the lower leg and foot, thickened nails, redness of the affected area when the legs are dependent, or dangled, and pallor when the foot is elevated.

• Sensory and autonomic Neurotherapy 

This complication occurs in up to 58 per cent of patients with longstanding disease. Neuropathy, a major etiologic component of most diabetic ulcerations, is present in more than 82 per cent of diabetic patients with foot wounds.4 This lack of protective sensation, combined with unaccommodated foot deformities, exposes patients to undue sudden or repetitive stress that leads to eventual ulcer formation with a risk of infection and possible amputation. Distal symmetric polyneuropathy is perhaps the most common complication affecting the lower extremities of patients with diabetes mellitus.

• Limited joint mobility and deformity 

Foot deformities, which are common in diabetic patients, lead to focal areas of high pressure. When an abnormal focus of pressure is coupled with a lack of sensation, a foot ulcer can develop. Most diabetic foot ulcers form over areas of bony prominences, especially when bunions, calluses or hammer-toe formations lead to abnormally prominent bony points. Foot deformities are believed to be more common in diabetic patients due to atrophy of the intrinsic musculature responsible for stabilizing the toes.

Conclusion 

So, this article has all the information on how diabetic people are prone to foot ulcers and why. All these above-mentioned points will explain it. Simultaneously, you can also take precautionary steps to prevent it from happening.