[Epidemiology of diabetic foot]

Abstract

Diabetes is one of the most common diseases and, in many developing and newly industrialized countries, the epidemic is growing at a dizzying rate. The main problems for diabetics are related to chronic complications of the disease. Among the complications of diabetes, the diabetic foot is gaining a new importance because it implies for diabetics the highest number of hospital admissions and considerable costs. In fact, about 15% of diabetics will experience in their life a foot ulcer. The greatest risk for these patients is the amputation. According to several studies, about 25-50% of diabetic patients receive immediate amputation at the time of the first visit due to the infection. Overall, it is estimated that approximately 50-70% of all lower limb amputations are due to diabetes. Therefore, diabetes is the leading cause of non-traumatic amputation of the lower limb in western countries, with a risk in diabetic patients 15 times higher than non-diabetics.