Diabetic Foot Care

What is diabetic foot care?

Diabetic foot care means monitoring and treating the feet of people who have diabetes. If you’ve been diagnosed with diabetes, or if your doctor says you have prediabetes, it’s important to start taking care of your feet now. 

Up to 34% of people with diabetes develop a foot ulcer at some point in their life. Foot ulcers don’t heal properly, so they can lead to foot or limb amputation without treatment. Unfortunately, amputations have risen by up to 50% recently in some areas, showing that too few people are receiving the diabetic foot care they need. 

How do diabetic foot problems develop?

With diabetes, your body isn’t able to create or react to insulin, which leads to high blood sugar. The damaging effects of high blood sugar include:

Nerve damage

About half of people who have diabetes develop nerve damage (neuropathy). Although diabetes damages nerves throughout your body, it often causes the most problems in two main areas: the eyes (diabetic retinopathy) and the feet. In the feet, neuropathy causes numbness and may also cause tingling and pain. 

Numbness is dangerous because it leaves you unable to feel minor injuries like cuts and scrapes. If you don’t realize those injuries are present, they might not get treated, and  untreated neuropathy over the long term can lead to collapse of the foot arch (Charcot’s foot). 

Blood vessel narrowing

High blood sugar and atherosclerosis — plaque buildup inside blood vessels — are linked. Atherosclerosis narrows blood vessels and reduces the amount of blood reaching your feet. You must have a healthy blood supply for normal body function and healing. 

Together, neuropathy and atherosclerosis can lead to nonhealing diabetic foot ulcers. 

What should diabetic foot care include?

At the office of Dr. Daniel Geller, the team provides comprehensive diabetic foot care. It includes:

• Routine checkups
• Education
• Custom orthotics
• Custom diabetic footwear
• Wound care 
• Surgery for life-threatening foot wounds

Daily foot inspections at home are important as well. By inspecting every inch of your feet every day, you can recognize new issues almost as soon as they happen and greatly reduce your risk of complications. 

You must work closely with your medical doctor to control your blood sugar as well. 

The office of Dr. Daniel Geller guides and supports patients with diabetes for a lifetime. Book an appointment online or call the nearest office today.