The cost of managing diabetic foot ulceration in an Irish hospital

Abstract

Background: Little is known about the economic impact of diabetic foot ulceration in the Irish healthcare setting.

Aim: Audit of diabetic foot ulcer admissions in St James's Hospital between April 2001 and March 2002.

Methods: Hospital charts were reviewed and costs were calculated on the length of patients' hospital stay and the cost of individual investigations performed.

Results: Thirty patients were admitted with diabetic foot ulceration as the primary complaint. Amputation was performed in eight patients, two patients with a non-healing ulcer died. The average duration of each hospital admission was 20.3+/-30.7 days. Net in-hospital expenditure was 704,689, an average of 23,489.63 per hospital admission.

Conclusions: The management of diabetic foot ulceration has a significant economic impact on the Irish healthcare budget. Treatment should therefore be focused on primary prevention through specialised foot clinics and a multidisciplinary team approach to reduce this economic burden.