BACKGROUND:
Diabetic
patients are predisposed to
foot infections because of vascular insufficiency and
peripheral neuropathy.
Diabetic foot infection is a common cause of
mortality and
lower extremity amputations (LEAs) in
patients with
chronic kidney disease (CKD). We evaluated the
risk factors for
mortality and LEAs in
patients with stage 3 CKD or higher with
diabetic foot infections.
METHODS:
We retrospectively evaluated a cohort of 105 CKD
patients with
diabetic foot infections between July 1998 and December 2011. We reviewed their demographic characteristics and
laboratory parameters to evaluate the
risk factors for
mortality and
amputations at 24 weeks after
diagnosis of a
diabetic foot infection.
RESULTS:
The
mortality of the 105 enrolled CKD
patients was 21% at 24 weeks after the
diagnosis of a
diabetic foot infection. Cox proportional
regression analyses revealed that age 60 years or older [
odds ratio (OR) 3.03, 95%
confidence interval (CI) = 1.02-9.02, P = 0.047] and initial
serum C-reactive protein (CRP) level > or = 3 mg/dL (OR 3.97, 95%CI = 1.17-13.43, P = 0.027) were independent
risk factors for
mortality at 24 weeks.Twenty-four
patients (23%) underwent LEAs. On Cox proportional
regression analyses,
peripheral vascular disease (OR=4.49,95% CI=1.98-10.17, P=0.01) and
cerebrovascular accident (OR 2.42, 95%CI=1.09-5.39, P=0.03) were independently associated with LEAs.
CONCLUSION:
This study showed that age and
serum CRP level, were independent
risk factors for
mortality at 24 weeks in
patients with stage 3-5 CKD with
diabetic foot infections.
Peripheral vascular disease and
cerebrovascular accident were significantly associated with LEAs.