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Foot Pain and Diabetes

Do you ever feel burning, tingling or numbness in your feet and toes? The American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons (ACFAS) warns against ignoring these symptoms as they can be a warning sign of diabetes.

These symptoms may be caused by a condition called diabetic peripheral neuropathy, or nerve damage. Neuropathy in the feet can lead to permanent numbness, deformities such as bunions and hammertoe, and dry skin that cracks open and won't heal.

Diabetic peripheral neuropathy may not only be painful, but dangerous, and is a leading contributor to foot ulcers in people with diabetes.

Burning, tingling and numbness in the toes can also be symptoms of thyroid problems, nutritional deficiencies, back problems and pinched nerves in the ankles. Diabetes is the leading cause of peripheral neuropathy in the United States, and can lead to further foot complications.

Out of the 23 million Americans with diabetes, one in four has not been diagnosed. Some people learn they have diabetes only after seeing medical care for burning, tingling and numbness in their toes and feet. Many who have been diagnosed with diabetes are not familiar with neuropathy's symptoms, which can be developed even by those with excellent blood sugar control.

Although medications can treat neuropathy pain, nerve damage cannot be reversed.

The statistics are daunting:

• When you have diabetes, especially diabetic neuropathy, a minor cut on your foot can turn into a catastrophe leading to bone infection and amputations.
• Twenty percent of diabetes patients who develop ulcers will require an amputation in their lifetime.
• Patients who are black, Hispanic and Native American are twice as likely to need a diabetes-related amputation.
• Half of all people with diabetes who have a toe or foot amputation die within three years.

For more information, contact Dr. Joel Brook, DPM or Dr. David Northcutt, DPM at 972-566-7474 or visit www.FootPhysicians.com.