Slow care leads to foot amputations !

Thousands of diabetes patients end up having a foot amputation because of slow treatment, a charity warns.

Diabetes UK says that up to 80% of foot amputations could be avoided if better care was in place.

Patients are suffering because many areas do not have services in place to quickly deal with foot ulcers and infections.

By 2015, the number of diabetes-related amputations is expected to rise to 7,000 a year.

When diabetes, both Types 1 and Type 2, is present for many years, especially if it is poorly controlled, it can cause complications such as reducing blood flow to vessels in the feet and nerve damage which reduces sensation.

This increases the risk of ulcers and infections that may lead to amputation.

A report produced in collaboration with the Society for Chiropodists and Podiatrists and NHS Diabetes points out that people with diabetes are more than 20 times more likely to have an amputation than the rest of the population.

More here.