Regresar

Epidemiological factors associated with the evolution of the diabetic foot

Abstract:

Diabetic foot ulcers are advanced chronic vascular lesions with tissue deterioration and with unfavorable prognosis; these ulcers pbkp_redict the risk of amputation in 90% of cases. The aim of this research is to establish an association between the epidemiological factors and the evolution of the diabetic foot. For this, in this paper we present an analytical, transversal, prospective study. Our sample consisted of 95 outpatients and hospitalized men and women diabetic patients, who attended Hospital José Carrasco Arteaga in Cuenca, Ecuador, over the time frame encompassing December 2017 to September 2018. For each patient we conducted an interview with epidemiological data and physical examination of the feet was done to assess the Wagner scale degrees. Results revealed that 93% of individuals had some degree of injury of their feet. Out of the examined individuals 61% were males, 41% have completed elementary school, and 63% lived in urban areas. The average age was of 69 years, the average diagnostic time of the disease was 14 years, and the patients have a BMI (Body Mass Index) average of 26. Significant correlation was observed between the Wagner's scale classification and the diagnosed time of the disease with a Chi-square of 47.02 and a P-value of 0.025 in the analysis of variance (ANOVA).