Diabetic foot

What is the diabetic foot and how should we take care of it?

Diabetic foot is one of the most serious complications that threaten people with diabetes. Diabetic foot is the name of the foot of diabetic people that has lesions below the ankles. Among the diseases and alarming skin problems that can appear in a diabetic foot are:

Good & dryness

The diabetic foot can show several skin problems including intense dryness and cracks in the skin, peeling, but even severe skin calluses. In order to avoid such situations, it is good to take care of the proper hydration of your foot, but without exaggeration. Calluses are important to be carefully removed using a pumice stone on wet skin, as if left they can cause dangerous ulcers and sores.

Wounds in diabetic foot

They most often appear on the sole of the foot under the big toe and heel, where the most pressure is applied when standing or walking, or even on the bottom of the toe. It is very important that these wounds be examined by a specialist because if left untreated they may endanger the viability of the entire foot.

Infections

As people with diabetes often have peripheral microangiopathy, the body's healing and defense against infections is significantly weaker compared to that of a healthy person. Also, because patients suffering from diabetes mellitus present with peripheral diabetic neuropathy, they do not have the sensation of pain that follows an infection, as a result of which it develops without giving symptoms noticeable by the patient.

• Care should be taken that patients never walk barefoot or in socks only, even indoors. On the beach or in the sea, beach shoes are essential.
• Shoes should be comfortable with thick soles. Prefer shoes with a deep and wide sole, with enough length and height in front to accommodate the toes and enough width in the area of the metatarsals.
• It is better to buy shoes at the end of the day and not in the morning, as our feet are more swollen in the afternoon than in the morning.
• Shoes should be thoroughly checked every night for any small objects inside, or for damaged seams on the soles.
• Socks should not be tight.
• Feet should be washed daily and dried carefully, especially in the areas between the toes.
• Feet should be checked every night for small wounds, especially on the soles of the feet, or in the spaces between the toes.
• Anything that comes to the patient's attention that is not normal in the leg must be reported to the doctor immediately.
• Contact specialized staff for care of calluses 
• Warm water, around 37oC, is the most suitable and not too hot
• Fight the dryness of the skin of the feet, mainly with moisturizing creams or foams (containing urea) recommended by qualified specialists.
• Cut the nails in a straight line with the skin. It is always safer to have the treatment done by qualified personnel.