Diabetic foot risk classification in a tertiary care teaching hospital of Peshawar

ABSTRACT

To find out diabetic foot risk classification in patients admitted with diabetes mellitus at a tertiary care teaching hospital. The hospital record of one hundred and twenty seven patients of diabetes mellitus, admitted to the medicine department, Khyber teaching hospital Peshawar from 1st October 2005 to 31st March 2006 were evaluated against the Royal College of Physicians, London; Clinical Guidelines for Type 2 diabetes prevention and management of foot problems. Both male and female indoor patients above 15 years of age were included in the study. An audit of 127 diabetes mellitus patient revealed that 25 [19.68%] patients were having low current risk, 21 [16.53%] were classified as having risk foot, 6 [4.72%] were categorized as high risk patients, 16 [12.59%] were admitted with ulcerated foot and 5 [3.39%] were having diabetic foot emergency according to Royal College of Physicians, London; Clinical Guidelines for Type 2 diabetes prevention and management of foot problems. The main reason for poor diabetic foot outcomes in the tertiary care teaching hospital is the absence of classification of majority of diabetic patients into different risk groups for the appropriate treatment. This lack of risk classification results in ensuing gaps in the management and an overall increase in morbidity