Treatment of the diabetic foot – to amputate or not?

BMC Surgery

Debate

Pius Fokam¹  Elroy P Weledji¹ 

[1] Department of Surgery, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Buea, PO Box 126, Limbe, S W Region, Cameroon;

关键词: Diabetic foot;    Infection;    Neuropathy;    Ischaemia;    Treatment;    Amputation;   

DOI  :  10.1186/1471-2482-14-83

 received in 2014-02-02, accepted in 2014-10-14,  发布年份 2014

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundDiabetic foot infections are a frequent clinical problem. About 50% of patients with diabetic foot infections who have foot amputations die within five years. Properly managed most can be cured, but many patients needlessly undergo amputations because of improper diagnostic and therapeutic approaches.DiscussionThe article debates the pros and cons of amputation of the diabetic foot. The thesis is that if the guidelines on the management of the diabetic foot are followed primary amputation is only necessary for the unsalvageable diabetic foot. This approach would reduce the incidence of lower limb amputations in diabetic patients.SummaryWe favour the argument that a structured clinical and vascular assessment would help clinical decision- making as to which patients to hospitalize, which to send for imaging, or for whom to recommend surgical interventions. Endovascular procedures are the future in the treatment of diabetic arterial disease and hence the diabetic foot.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© Weledji and Fokam; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. 2014