Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: The diabetic foot is a public health problem. It can cause serious complications leading to amputation.

Aim: To determine the clinical, biological, therapeutic and evolutionary characteristics of the diabetic foot.

Patients and Methods: Prospective descriptive study conducted at the HCA Diabetology Department, over a period of 36 months. Inclusion of all hospitalized or followed up patients in consultation for a diabetic foot. The total number of patients was 281.

Results: The average age of patients was 61.82 years. The majority of them (74%) were males of which, 94% had T2DM. The median age of diabetes was 15 years. A diabetic foot ulcer was the reason for the initial discovery of diabetes in 4.7% of the patients. Over 65% of the patients were on insulin. One or more degenerative complications were noted in 94.8% of them. 25.4% of the patients had at least one history of amputation. The right foot was affected in 52.3% of the cases. The median consultation time at the diabetology department was 30 days. Infected diabetic feet accounted for 54.9% of the cases. The most frequent entry portal for foot infections was inter-toe intertrigos in 31% of cases, followed by trauma in 25.51% and the plantar neuropathic ulcer in 24.13%. Dermo-hypodermatitis was the most frequent type of infection, representing 86.2% of the cases. The average duration of antibiotic therapy for infected feet was 14.73 days. Osteitis was present in 87.6% of patients with infected feet; they were treated medically in 69.2% of cases. 16% of patients underwent minor amputation. Median hospital stay was 22 days, with extremes ranging from 7 to 101 days. Median time to definitive healing was 30 days.

Conclusion: The diabetic foot is a public health problem because of the risk of wounds progressing to amputation. Proper education of diabetic patients and early multidisciplinary medical care can improve prognosis and prevent recurrence.