What Are Diabetic Foot Problems?

WHAT ARE DIABETIC FOOT PROBLEMS Jul,06,2021

If you are suffering from diabetes, having too much blood glucose can lead to many complications and one such complication is a foot problem. High levels of glucose in your blood for a long time can result in two problems that can affect your feet. These are:

 

Diabetic Neuropathy 

When diabetes is uncontrolled, it can result in nerve damage and if the nerves in your feet are damaged, you may not feel pain, heat, or cold in your feet. “Sensory diabetic neuropathy” is the term used to refer to this lack of feeling. If you do not feel a sore or wound on your foot due to diabetic neuropathy, it can become worse and infected. Therefore, you need to get proper treatment for your diabetes from an affordable health clinic in your area.

 

Peripheral Vascular Disease

Diabetes can also affect blood flow in our bodies. When an extreme decrease in the blood flow can be observed, this medical condition is termed as a peripheral vascular disease. Without proper flow of blood, the healing process of cuts and wounds will be longer. If you have an infection in your body that will not heal due to a poor flow of blood, you might develop gangrene or an ulcer.

 

Common Foot Problems With Diabetes 

Some of the most common foot problems are shared below. Anyone can get these problems. However, for diabetic people, these foot problems can result in serious complications and even amputations.

 

Fungal Nail Infections

When nails are infected with fungus, they can become discolored, brittle, and opaque. In some cases, the nails can crumble. Injuries to nails or the dark and moist environment of shoes can result in the growth of fungus. These infections are hard to treat and you may have to take oral prescription medications to treat fungal nail infections.

 

Athlete’s Foot 

This is yet another fungal infection that can result in itching, cracking, and redness of the feet. Germs can enter your body through these cracks and result in infection. Antifungal medications are commonly used to treat athlete’s foot disease. Low income clinics in your area can help you get proper treatment for Athlete’s foot disease.

 

Diabetic Ulcers 

A deep sore or a break in the skin can result in a foot ulcer. These ulcers can become infected and can occur as a result of a minor scrape, cut, or rubbing of shoes that are not fitting. A proper and timely treatment plan must be initiated as soon as these ulcers are discovered. 

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    About the Author

    Dr. Ghassan M. Al-Jazayrly, MD

    A graduate of University of Aleppo Faculty of Medicine, Dr. Al-Jazayrly or, as he is colloquially known: Dr. AJ, is an oncologist and hematologist of a Complete Care Community Health Center (CCCHC) with more than 36 years of experience. In recent years, he’s been involved with a non profit organization known as Every Woman Counts (EWC) which provides free breast and cervical cancer screening and diagnostic services to California’s underserved populations in order to eliminate health disparities for low-income individuals.

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