Diabetes Leg Pain and Injury
Roger Guzman, M.D.
November 10, 2008
Diabetes leg pain and injury is not the end of the world for there are some possible solutions. This topic includes not only injury to the lower legs but to the feet as well. This issue has posed such big problems for the diabetics. Why? Because they are two times more liable to suffer from these than the non-diabetic people.
A new study has offered a chance for preventing and effectively treating this condition. The paper entitled "What´s New in Orthopaedic Rehabilitation" is published in the issue of a magazine called "The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery".
The article presented new discoveries and advancement on this problem.
We know that the nerves can be damaged by diabetes making it hard to feel the damage at an earlier period before the situation gets out of hand. On top of this, diabetes hinders circulation thus preventing successful healing of the injury.
That is why the diabetics have been warned to be proactive in examining their feet because when undetected and uncontrolled, the injury will lead to gangrene and amputations. A daily examination of the feet may help prevent this from happening.
The risk factors are as follows. Smoking is the most significant of all of them. The others are high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes, inactive lifestyle and high levels of triglycerides and blood cholesterol. A family history is also one of the risk factors.
Smoking is the most influential of all the risk factors. Although the mechanism by which smoking causes or worsens atherosclerosis is unclear, it is known that the degree of damage to the arterial wall lining is directly related to the amount of tobacco used. Quitting smoking is essential in the battle against atherosclerosis progression.
The co-author of the paper, Harish Hosalkar, MD, who is also an instructor of orthopaedic surgery at the University of Pennsylvania said that the goal is prevention. He said that once the injury has started, there is a greater risk for amputation. It´s best to stop it before this occurs.
A new study found that the diabetics who check the temperature of their feet and lessen their activity when they find the temperature high showed infection at a lower rate. Hosalkar is excited at this discovery because it is a valuable prevention tool and it is easy to carry out by both the caregivers and patients.
Two more studies also found some casting methods that are quicker and just as useful in healing the injury to foot and lower leg. This will be helpful for clinicians at diabetic camps where they probably see more than 100 patients a day with injury problems to their feet and lower leg.
Patients with diabetes leg pain may show symptoms from the very minor to the obvious gangrene that may lead to limb loss. Those with minor symptoms show that amputation is not common. The progress to amputation really depends on several factors.
The signs and symptoms to show that the arterial problem is causing the diabetes leg pain are discoloring of the leg that is affected when it is dangling and the difference in the temperature in the leg that is affected. It will be cooler than the other one. Other signs are wounds that do not heal, change in sensation like tingling and the absence of pulse or at least diminished in the affected area.
A healthy lifestyle of no smoking, healthy eating and exercising daily to prevent hypertension and obesity will go a long way to keep the loss of limb from happening. Regular and timely check-up along with patient compliance to the treatment that has been prescribed will help solve the problem of the diabetes leg pain and injury.
A new study has offered a chance for preventing and effectively treating this condition. The paper entitled "What´s New in Orthopaedic Rehabilitation" is published in the issue of a magazine called "The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery".
The article presented new discoveries and advancement on this problem.
We know that the nerves can be damaged by diabetes making it hard to feel the damage at an earlier period before the situation gets out of hand. On top of this, diabetes hinders circulation thus preventing successful healing of the injury.
That is why the diabetics have been warned to be proactive in examining their feet because when undetected and uncontrolled, the injury will lead to gangrene and amputations. A daily examination of the feet may help prevent this from happening.
The risk factors are as follows. Smoking is the most significant of all of them. The others are high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes, inactive lifestyle and high levels of triglycerides and blood cholesterol. A family history is also one of the risk factors.
Smoking is the most influential of all the risk factors. Although the mechanism by which smoking causes or worsens atherosclerosis is unclear, it is known that the degree of damage to the arterial wall lining is directly related to the amount of tobacco used. Quitting smoking is essential in the battle against atherosclerosis progression.
The co-author of the paper, Harish Hosalkar, MD, who is also an instructor of orthopaedic surgery at the University of Pennsylvania said that the goal is prevention. He said that once the injury has started, there is a greater risk for amputation. It´s best to stop it before this occurs.
A new study found that the diabetics who check the temperature of their feet and lessen their activity when they find the temperature high showed infection at a lower rate. Hosalkar is excited at this discovery because it is a valuable prevention tool and it is easy to carry out by both the caregivers and patients.
Two more studies also found some casting methods that are quicker and just as useful in healing the injury to foot and lower leg. This will be helpful for clinicians at diabetic camps where they probably see more than 100 patients a day with injury problems to their feet and lower leg.
Patients with diabetes leg pain may show symptoms from the very minor to the obvious gangrene that may lead to limb loss. Those with minor symptoms show that amputation is not common. The progress to amputation really depends on several factors.
The signs and symptoms to show that the arterial problem is causing the diabetes leg pain are discoloring of the leg that is affected when it is dangling and the difference in the temperature in the leg that is affected. It will be cooler than the other one. Other signs are wounds that do not heal, change in sensation like tingling and the absence of pulse or at least diminished in the affected area.
A healthy lifestyle of no smoking, healthy eating and exercising daily to prevent hypertension and obesity will go a long way to keep the loss of limb from happening. Regular and timely check-up along with patient compliance to the treatment that has been prescribed will help solve the problem of the diabetes leg pain and injury.
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