Diabetics face amputation risk due to lack of health checks

Tue, 15 Nov 2011
A quarter of the diabetic population of the UK could be at risk of amputation due to a lack of proper health checks on their feet, a new study has found. The research, carried out by the charity Diabetes UK showed that one on four of people with diabetes could be at risk of amputation due to not having had a foot check carried out over the course of the last year.

It was recommended that diabetics should have a check on both their feet and legs as part of an annual healthcare review, especially with diabetes patients being at up to a 15 times higher risk of a major amputation than those who do not have the metabolic condition.

The survey was based on information from more than 7,000 people with diabetes in the UK, and with another recent study by the National Diabetes Audit finding that a sixth of people with diabetes had not had had not received a foot check over the previous year, it appears that diabetes patients are being failed in terms of proper health care.

The Diabetes UK survey also showed that over a fifth of diabetics had not a urine or blood test over the past year to assess the functioning of their kidneys, while 62 per cent of people were also without an individual care plan that had been put together by a healthcare professional.

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