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Graphic Content Diabetic Foot Amputation

hemtarl17

hemtarl17

Newbie
Messages
1
Type of diabetes
Type 2
Treatment type
I do not have diabetes
Hi,

I have a father who is diabetic and currenty in the hospital because his foot has wounds that are not healing and already darkening. His doctor advised us to proceed for amputation but we are hoping that we could avoid that.. Could u pls help us decide what to do thank youreceived_1872249646176352.jpeg received_1872248692843114.jpeg received_1872248242843159.jpeg
 

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I'm so sorry for your father and you. I don't think anyone on here can give you sound advice on what to do, but I would be inclined to believe my doctor if they told me I needed to have my foot amputated.
Would it make you feel better to ask for a second opinion? Just to make sure his doctor didn't miss something?
I wish you both all the best!
 
Gosh, there should have been a warning in the title for this post. I am afraid my Mum was in the exact same position (at 82 years old though) and there was nothing that could be done, she was too old for an amputation (and had dementia etc) so we decided we could not put her through it and I don't think they would have done it anyway. I don't know how old your Dad is but I am sure they have told you that without an amputation, his outlook is bleak. I am SO sorry for you, I personally do not think there is even a choice with this one, if the Doctors are saying it is beyond saving then an amputation is the only option, that is what we were told but of course ONLY your surgeon/consultant can give you advice, the rest of us can only give you our stories. x
 
Hello and welcome to the forum. I am sorry to hear that your Dad is in the position of having to make this decision but we are not doctors and I am afraid that the only advice I can give is to listen to his consultants as they would not have made the recommendation to amputate lightly.

I wish you and your father all the best for a complete and swift recovery. Please take a wander around the forum and ask as many questions as you like.
 
Guzzler said:
Hello and welcome to the forum. I am sorry to hear that your Dad is in the position of having to make this decision but we are not doctors and I am afraid that the only advice I can give is to listen to his consultants as they would not have made the recommendation to amputate lightly.

I wish you and your father all the best for a complete and swift recovery. Please take a wander around the forum and ask as many questions as you like.
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Hi and firstly I am so sorry ... you must be very upset having to make the decision. My son had his left arm amputated in August last yeqr (to save his life as it was starting to rot) He wasn't diabetic but it's the same outcome. He feels so lucky to be alive and has coped far better than anyone could have imagined, so please take on board your dad's quality of life and do what you know is right
 
I agree with everyone above.

Please take the advice of your father’s healthcare team, and follow their advice,
No one here on the forum is able to give you medical advice, or suggest that you do anything else.

My heart goes out to you both. It must be a worrying and stressful time, and i wish your father a quick recovery and a return to health.
 
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hemtarl17 said:
Could u pls help us decide what to do thank you
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I can't give advice, but, if in future there is any concern about wounds or sores not healing, Oxygen Therapy is worth considering. I volunteer at a Multiple Sclerosis Centre in Buckinghamshire and apart from being used as part of the therapy offered to people with MS, it is used by footballers from Wycombe Wanderers as an aid to faster healing, also people recovering from surgery. I know that it has helped people with sores where the healing was taking too long, breathing oxygen at 2 ATA has helped them a lot.

The problem with a problem like your father's is that it's not something you have a lot of time to sort out. My father was in hospital for six weeks after his toe was amputated, he was lucky that it wasn't his foot or his leg and that he didn't lose his life. His problem had been not going to the doctor in the first place.

All the best.
 
hemtarl17 said:
I have a father who is diabetic and currenty in the hospital because his foot has wounds that are not healing and already darkening. His doctor advised us to proceed for amputation but we are hoping that we could avoid that.. Could u pls help us decide what to do thank you
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I'm so sorry. That is a terrible situation for you both, and something all diabetics dread. I am posting a video of the Panorama programme on diabetes. The scenes of surgery are upsetting, but at the end we see an elderly man who has undergone amputation and is now re-learning to walk. He and his wife are full of optimism for the future and determined that this will not stop them doing anything they want. I hope this might be encouraging for both of you.

 
hemtarl17 said:
Hi,

I have a father who is diabetic and currenty in the hospital because his foot has wounds that are not healing and already darkening. His doctor advised us to proceed for amputation but we are hoping that we could avoid that.. Could u pls help us decide what to do thank youView attachment 27292 View attachment 27293 View attachment 27294
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Hemtarl, I'm so sorry to hear your news. It must be very distressing for you and my only comment would be that I feel confident the medics will not have reached their conclusions and made their recommentation lightly.

I wish you all the best of luck.
 
The only possibility of a wound like that healing is for blood glucose to be brought down to a very low level the only way I know what's effective is a low carb diet given the carb content of hospital food this may not be a practical option for your dad. Even then, it is still questionable if it will heal.

Having the amputation sooner rather than later and hence enabling him to return home may well be the best option for his long-term health. Then make use of the information that @daisy1 will give you.

If I was my dad, I would be trying to get him on the 'steak and egg diet'.
 
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The images are irreversible gangrene and only amputation could save your father's life.

Please follow medical advice without delay or it could be fatal. I am sorry about this unpleasant situation.
 
I was thinking gangrene, or necrosis as well. It looks much like what happens after bad frostbite. But like everyone else has said, listen to his medical team. As I understand it, if there's too much dead or damaged tissue, then there's a high risk of infection spreading. That may mean losing more of his leg, or if septicemia spreads, more risk of organ damage or death.

It's a tough decision to make, but if it's not getting any better, there's time pressure to make sure it doesn't get even worse.
 
Hemtarl17 my heart goes out to you and your father for having to go through this. I know it can’t be easy. This should also be a wake up call to the rest of us to make sure we keep our blood glucose levels under control, and to have our feet checked regularly. Diabetes is not very forgiving if left out of control.
 
So sorry to hear this, but I agree with the others, the medical team won't have made this decision lightly.

Thinking of you and your Dad...
 
The picture of his whole foot shows his little toe, and the area around his big toe knuckle don't look good. The process by which a normal foot heals, and a diabetic foot doesn't are complicated.

There is research that shows olive oil can help, but it may be too late for that, I don't know. This is a US site, writing about research in Iran.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4428202/

But there is a photo of a big toe in a very bad situation, that was healed. But it may be too late for that, I don't know.

Other than that, controlling blood sugars, and also here are some guidelines on best practice for dealing with these wounds. Doctors, and nursing staff do their best, but it's always a good idea to be as well informed as you can about the best treatment.

http://www.woundsinternational.com/media/best-practices/_/673/files/dfubestpracticeforweb.pdf
 
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