The impact of statin therapy on the healing of diabetic foot ulcers: a case-control series.

BACKGROUND: Diabetic foot ulcers (DFU) are a costly complication of diabetes mellitus (DM), with significant implications for the patient and the healthcare professionals that treat them. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate if there were improved healing rates in patients with a DFU that were taking a statin medication compared to those patients with a DFU who were not taking a statin medication. Secondary outcomes assessed were correlations with wound healing or statin use on data obtained from retrospective chart review. METHODS: A case-control series was performed to obtain appropriate demographic information, comorbid conditions, laboratory values, and physical examination findings. From the time of presentation with DFU, these patients were followed for 12 weeks to evaluate for healing. Healing was defined as full epithelialization of the DFU with no further drainage. Wound healing and statin use correlation testing was then done for collected variables and each cohort. Chi square and Pearson correlation were then performed to identify any significant correlations. All p-values were two-sided, and findings were considered statistically significant at p < 0.05. RESULTS: Our study identified 109 patients, 75 patients with a DFU on statin medication and 34 patients with a DFU not on statin medication. The statin cohort was more likely to be older, less than 5-year duration of diabetes, have more comorbidities, decreased low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, and decreased total cholesterol (p < 0.05). Among those patients taking a statin medication, 48.0% (36/75) healed their DFU within 12 weeks. Among those patients not taking a statin medication, 44.1% (15/34) healed their DFU within 12 weeks. No correlation was noted between wound healing and statin use (p = 0.7). For wound healing, a negative correlation was noted for prior minor amputations (p < 0.05). For statin use, correlations were noted for age, duration of DM, LDL cholesterol level, total cholesterol level, HTN, CAD, and HLD (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Statin medication use did not influence DFU healing rates between cohorts. There was a correlation noted between wound healing and prior minor amputations and between statin use and age, duration of DM, LDL cholesterol, total cholesterol, HTN, CAD and HLD. Additionally, we observed no correlation between DFU healing rates and use of a statin medication.

Treatment of fusarium osteomyelitis in a diabetic foot ulcer complicated by antineoplastic chemotherapy.

INTRODUCTION: Diabetic foot osteomyelitis (DFO) is a severe complication of diabetic foot ulcerations (DFUs). Fusarium osteomyelitis in patients who are severely immunocompromised is not well documented in current literature. Fusarium is an invasive fungal species that has been shown to respond poorly to antifungal therapy alone, and bone debridement is usually required. Treatment for DFO may consist of surgical amputation, antimicrobial therapy, and/or conservative surgery (CS) or bone debridement. CASE PRESENTATION: The authors present a case of Fusarium osteomyelitis in a 77-year-old female with type 2 diabetes and acute myeloid leukemia, simultaneously undergoing chemotherapy. The patient had a DFU to the second digit with DFO suggested by magnetic resonance imaging. Bone cultures revealed coagulase-negative staphylococci and Fusarium species. Due to the patient's severely immunocompromised state, they were treated with CS and joint antifungal and antibiotic therapy. The DFU was healed in 6 weeks with no reoccurrence at 6 months. CONCLUSIONS: This case report, to the authors' knowledge, is the first to demonstrate successful remission of Fusarium osteomyelitis with a conservative procedure and adjunct antifungal therapy in an immunocompromised patient.

Plantar fasciitis in patients with type 1 and type 2 diabetes: A contemporary cohort study.

OBJECTIVE: Hyperglycemia leads to increase advanced glycation end products (AGEs) in patients with type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Subsequently, formation of AGEs can cause increased plantar fascial thickness (PFT), an imaging feature of plantar fasciitis (PF). This study evaluates the prevalence of PF in a contemporary cohort of type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes patients managed according to current standards, compared to patients without diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: This is a five-year prevalence study in a large tertiary health system (approximately 535,000 patients/visits/year) with a single electronic medical record (EMR), applying a cohort discovery tool and database screen (Data Direct) with use of ICD-9 and ICD-10 codes. All patients with a PF diagnosis between 01/01/2011 and 01/01/2016 were included and divided into 3 groups: type 1 diabetes (7148 patients), type 2 diabetes (61,632 patients), and no diabetes (653,659 patients). Prevalence rates were calculated, accounting for other risk factors including BMI and gender using Fisher's exact test. RESULTS: The overall prevalence of PF in the entire study population was 0.85%. Prevalence rates were higher in patients with diabetes, particularly with type 2 diabetes (42% and 64% higher compared with patients with type 1 diabetes and no diabetes respectively). Individually, PF rates were 0.92% in type 1 diabetes and 1.31% in type 2 diabetes compared with 0.80% in patients with no diabetes (Type 1 vs. no diabetes p = 0.26; Type 2 vs. no diabetes p ≪ 0.0001; Type 1 vs. Type 2 diabetes p = 0.0054). Females in all groups had higher prevalence of PF than males (p ≪ 0.0001 for all), with those patients with diabetes having higher prevalence rates than those without diabetes. Patients with higher BMI levels (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2) were also more likely to have PF in all categories except males with type 1 diabetes (p = 0.40). CONCLUSIONS: In this large contemporary population managed in a tertiary health system, prevalence rates of PF were substantially higher in patients with diabetes compared with no diabetes, particularly in type 2 diabetes. Female gender and higher BMI were also associated with higher prevalence of PF in this cohort.

Acute pseudogout of the foot following Parathyroidectomy: a case report.

BACKGROUND: The current case report is the first in the literature to report the association between parathyroidectomy and an episode of probable pseudogout in the foot in a patient with diabetes mellitus. CASE PRESENTATION: The authors present a case of pseudogout of the left foot following a subtotal parathyroidectomy in an 80-year-old female with type 2 diabetes mellitus and primary hyperparathyroidism. Pseudogout, also known as calcium pyrophosphate dehydrate deposition disease, is an unusual metabolic sequela following parathyroidectomy. Pseudogout attacks have been noted in the immediate post-operative period following parathyroidectomy, but has rarely been identified in the foot. The diagnosis was challenging and there were multiple differential diagnoses that were entertained in this case. CONCLUSIONS: This case illustrates the importance of reviewing the surgical history as there might be a link between the previous surgeries and current foot problems. This case also serves as a reminder of the importance of calcium and phosphate metabolism in podiatric health. Most specifically it demonstrates again the association of pseudogout and parathyroidectomy in a patient with diabetes mellitus. Although a rare occurrence, it is an important reminder that metabolic imbalances of calcium levels can manifest in any bone.

Malignant Transformation of a Site of Prior Diabetic Foot Ulceration to Verrucous Carcinoma: A Case Report.

The case of a 62-year-old Caucasian man with type 1 diabetes who developed malignant transformation of an area of prior diabetic foot ulceration (DFU) is reported. He had significant hallux valgus deformity, multiple episodes of healing and breakdown, and eventual transformation to verrucous carcinoma (VC). This case report highlights the malignant transformation of a site of previous DFU to VC, which, to the best of the authors' knowledge, has not yet been described in the literature. There has been little research performed that examines VC in the diabetic population. This case report also highlights the importance of clinical suspicion for malignant transformation as well as the use of subsequent biopsy when necessary.