Take care of your feet, diabetics advised

UAE improves global ranking for diabetes prevalence

Abu Dhabi: Foot hygiene is imperative among diabetes patients to help prevent amputation, said Susan Tulley, head of podiatry services at Healthpoint, a Mubadala healthcare facility.

Susan Tulley explains the foot problems associated with diabetes to a patient in Abu Dhabi. — Supplied photo

According to her, the Middle East is “poorly served” when it comes to foot care services and that feet are not given the kind of significance “they should have (been) given (since) they are one of the three main complications of diabetes.” Eyes and kidneys are two other complications.

She said that although foot problem associated with diabetes usually occurs over a long period of time “that can be speeded up if those persons don’t look after themselves, their blood sugar level, blood pressure. The complications can kick on much more quicker than you would normally expect,” said Tulley, who has been practising in the region for the past 21 years.

20 years younger

Compared to their European counterparts, feet complications occur earlier to diabetics in the region.

“In Britain, I wouldn’t expect diabetic complication in the feet to occur till 55-75 years, that late stage. Here it’s much younger, I would say between 35-55 years. On a whole, that’s 20 years younger than their European counterparts. I think this is because of the lack of prevention services,” Tulley pointed out.

According to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), every seven seconds, someone dies from diabetes and someone is amputated every 20 seconds. Foot problems occur primarily when the vascularity and the nerve supply are compromised due to diabetes.

Foot hygiene

Tulley underscored the importance of foot hygiene. “The persons themselves may not always realise they’ve got a problem with their feet. They don’t feel it (blisters) because the nerve supply is impaired, resulting into ulcer and wounds that don’t heal and that’s when they start coming and that can be too late.

She noted that prevention is the key, and this means getting the foot checked at least once a year and getting a family member checked one’s foot for signs of blisters or wound.

Tulley advised to look for red and hot area on the foot that could indicate an infection and any unusual abrasions or blisters on the feet. She also recommended washing and drying the feet as part of daily care.

UAE ranking

The latest figures released by the IDF on Friday to mark the World Diabetes Day showed that the UAE has improved its global ranking for diabetes prevalence.

“The UAE now sits at 16th in global ranking for countries with highest diabetes prevalence, having been placed 15th in the 2013,” said Suhail Mahmood Al Ansari, executive director of Mubadala Healthcare and chairman of Imperial College London Diabetes Centre (ICLDC). Despite this improvement, the IDF figures suggest that the prevalence of diabetes in the UAE has actually remained close to the 2013 figure, suggesting that 19 per cent of the population live with diabetes, a slight increase from 18.98 per cent last year.

olivia@khaleejtimes.com