Muhammad Ahmad Tahir Chowdhry, Hiba Shakeel, Usman Ismat Butt, Muhammad Umar, Syed Muhammad Bilal, Wasim Hayat Khan, Mahmood Ayyaz.
Awareness of Foot Care among Diabetic patients Presenting at services Hospital, Lahore.
Pak J Med Health Sci Jan ;14(2):400-2.

Background: Diabetes is a chronic disease with a number of complications. Diabetic foot being one of them can lead to loss of limb and life. It may also lead to physical, psychological and economical loss not just for patient but family also. Aim: To evaluate the awareness and practice of foot care among diabetic patients presenting to us at a tertiary care center of Lahore. Methods: We performed a prospective study over a 6 month period from Oct 2018 to March 2019. A 100 consenting diabetic patients were included in our study. We recorded the patients` socio-demographic characteristics, the time since onset of diabetes, the medical history and the educational level. A total of 15 questions were asked from the patients and their response to the questions was recorded. All data was recorded and stratification for variables was done using SPSS version 22. Results: A total of 100 patients were included in our study. 47 were female and 53 were male. The mean age of the patients was 52.06 +/- 13.49 years. 51 patients were educated while 49 patients were illiterate. (Educated being considered at least 5 years of education). Out of 100 patients , 54 patients had good practice regarding the diabetic foot whereas 46 had poor diabetic foot care practice. When stratification for variables was done it was found that age of the patient and direct education by health care provider were the most significant factors which influenced the awareness of the patients regarding the diabetic foot. Conclusion: It appears that the awareness of the diabetic patients regarding the potentially life and limb saving knowledge regarding care of the feet remains wanting. Evidence that the direct education from health care provider is significant in increasing awareness should encourage all medical personnel involved in the management of diabetic patients to educate their patients in this regard.

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