Contents:
- Medical Video: Diabetic Neuropathy
- What is that diabetic foot?
- Why diabetic foot could occur?
- Damage to peripheral blood vessels
- Nerve damage
- Foot disorders that may be experienced by diabetics
- 1. Fungal infections
- 2. Hammertoes
- 3. Calluses
- 4. Resilient
- 5. Ulceration in the legs
Medical Video: Diabetic Neuropathy
Excess glucose levels in the blood are the cause of various diseases. This condition can cause inflammation and blockage in the blood vessels to eventually cause complications because blood cannot flow properly. Diabetics have high blood sugar levels and tend to be difficult to control. The impact is damage to organs in even limbs, or often referred to as diabetic foot.
What is that diabetic foot?
Diabetic foot can be interpreted as various kinds of complications in the foot found in diabetics. This complication can take the form of anything caused by damage due to high blood sugar levels, and if a foot injury occurs it will be very easy to infect. Low body resistance and limited body ability to heal wounds in diabetic feet cause infection to get worse, even disability can occur and must be amputated to break infection from the foot.
Why diabetic foot could occur?
There are two important mechanisms for occurrence diabetic foot: peripheral blood vessel damage (peripheral) and nerve damage (neuropathy).
Damage to peripheral blood vessels
The condition of diabetes causes problems with blood flow from the heart throughout the body. Blood flow from the heart is needed to restore tissue damage to the injured body part. Without good blood flow, it will be very difficult for a wound to recover and will not even recover. The impact is tissue death due to lack of blood intake (gangrene) and accompanied by open wounds (ulcerations) that are very risky for infection with germs in the legs.
Nerve damage
Most diabetics are unaware of the injuries and the severity of injuries that continue to increase due to nerve disorders (neuropathy) caused by damage caused by high blood sugar levels. The condition of neuropathy causes diabetics not to feel pain or pressure on the feet. In addition to the impact on injuries, diabetics who have neuropathy also have difficulty moving their feet due to nerve disorders with the leg muscles.
Both of these causative factors are interrelated and cause permanent leg defects in diabetics.
Foot disorders that may be experienced by diabetics
Disorders in the legs of diabetics in general are the death of the tissue in the foot and can vary due to various factors including infection and the presence of foot injuries. Here are some foot disorders that diabetics may experience:
1. Fungal infections
Fungal infections in the skin of the feet of diabetics are usually caused by Candida albicans. This fungus usually attacks the skin that is moist, lacks air circulation, and is not exposed to sunlight. Fungal infections Candida albicans causing itching and red spots on the surface of the foot. Infection on the skin surface by fungi is known as the term Athlete's foot which is characterized by itching, red spots, accompanied by cracks on the skin. This can also occur in toenails that are marked by changes in the color of the nail to a thick brownish yellow, sometimes accompanied by broken nails.
2. Hammertoes
It is a disability that is often found in diabetics caused by weakened toes. The condition of the toes that bend down is due to the tendons (the tissue that connects the muscles to the bones) to be shorter. The same thing can happen to the toes that are curved towards the second toe known as bunion. As a result, diabetics can have difficulty walking, pain and skin buildup around the fingers (callus). This can also be triggered due to pressure on the fingers when using shoes.
3. Calluses
Call or callous is the term for the buildup of hard skin (soles of the soles of the feet) due to differences in the weight distribution of the heels and soles of the feet. The process of skin accumulation will occur faster so that calluses occur faster in individuals who have diabetes. Calluses are usually triggered by footwear that does not match the shape of the foot resulting in pressure at several points of the foot surface. Keep in mind, even if it causes discomfort,do not cut the skin buildup due to callus because it can cause bleeding and ulceration.
4. Resilient
Lenting or blister is a disorder caused by continuous foot friction, triggered by not using socks when wearing shoes. Lenting is shaped like a bubble filled with liquid, and in diabetics it is usually found greater resilience on the surface of the foot. The fluid-filled skin protects the feet from being infected, so don't break the resilience of the feet.
5. Ulceration in the legs
Open wounds that require a long time to close again. Usually in diabetics, ulceration becomes the most frequently entered by germs and can infect the feet if not handled as early as possible.
Various infections and disorders of blood flow to the feet are the main causes of disability in diabetics. If the infection is too severe, the leg must be amputated. Early treatment of wounds, choice of footwear, and foot hygiene are the main keys in preventing foot infections in diabetics. If you have been diagnosed with diabetes, immediately stop smoking because cigarette smoke can inhibit flow and accelerate the development of complications of foot disorders in people with diabetes.
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