Diabetes is the #1 reason for non-traumatic limb amputations
82,000 people lose a leg or foot to diabetes each year
The risk of leg amputations is 15-40 times greater for a person with diabetes
At the 2006 ADA Expo in Utah, The Educational Institute For Healthy Feet had its first booth and conducted a market survey of diabetic participants. We received responses from participants ages 5 to 82. Note the high number of respondents from the age group 51-60 as shown.
Age Percent of Respondents
61-70 18%
51-60 27%
41-50 18%
Being in the business of “healthy foot care,” we are concerned about the risks people take by not treating common foot problems. In our survey, we concentrated on collecting data about foot calluses, cracks, and calluses with cracks. We found the survey to be quite astonishing considering the data from the American Diabetes Association relating to limb amputations and that 82,000 people are at risk annually.
Considering the statistics from our survey, information about the high risk of limb amputation from the ADA, and the fact that of the 185 people we surveyed 81% had some type of insurance, why were 64% of our respondents still suffering from calluses and/or cracks on their feet that are potentially life threatening? Drawing on 13 years of foot work experience, we propose the reasons may be:
1. Lack of education: The most common response is “I have dry skin and I should do something about it, but I do not know what to do.”
2. Heredity. We often hear remarks like, “My family has always had problems with calluses and cracks, and there is nothing I can do about it”
3. Hopelessness. Another frequent explanation is, “I go to the doctor’s office for treatments but the calluses just come back again”
Let’s take a look at each of these reasons.
1. Lack of education. We had the opportunity to go with a client to her foot care appointment and we asked her doctor if he would participate in an experiment. Marie had been going to the same doctor for over 15 years with dry calluses and cracks. The doctor would wet down the calluses with a disinfecting solution and then use a scalpel to shave off the calluses. He would then wrap her feet in tape so that Marie could walk out of the office. This procedure was done every 4 to 6 weeks with the calluses always coming back. Marie said that the procedure was painful. She became allergic to the tape and was unable to continue having her feet wrapped. This meant that she was in pain every time she walked for at least 3 days after each procedure. With the doctor’s consent, we decided to compare results of our foot treatment against that of the doctor’s standard treatments. We took care of Marie’s worse foot that had cracks and calluses. The doctor treated the other foot, which had only calluses. After 6 weeks and three callus treatments, the foot that the doctor had used the scalpel on was in worse condition than the foot that had a callus foot treatment. The doctor was amazed that the procedure and post-procedure were painless for the client. Interestingly, the doctor never instructed Marie to use moisturizing cr
Tags: Calluses, Diabetic, Diabetic Feet, Healthy Feet
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