People with diabetes can easily get wounds on their feet. Improper cutting or care of toenails and feet is the leading cause that could lead to toe finger and foot amputation.
Diabetics can have a harder time healing from a wound, and should a jagged nail snag, it could rip off part of their nail. Plus, the uneven edge could accidentally scratch their legs while sleeping.
Myth: People with diabetes can't cut their own toenails
Not true: the general advice on toenail cutting applies to everyone. If you have diabetes you should keep your nails healthy by cutting them to the shape of the end of your toes.
Not having enough blood flowing to your legs and feet can make it hard for a sore or an infection to heal. Sometimes, a bad infection never heals. The infection might lead to gangrene. Gangrene and foot ulcers that do not get better with treatment can lead to an amputation of your toe, foot, or part of your leg.
Avoid soaking your feet, as this can lead to dry skin. Dry your feet gently, especially between the toes. Moisturize your feet and ankles with lotion or petroleum jelly. Do not put oils or creams between your toes — the extra moisture can lead to infection.
A change in the color and temperature of your feet. Thickened, yellow toenails. Fungus infections such as athlete's foot between your toes. A blister, sore, ulcer, infected corn, or ingrown toenail.
Depending on your needs, we may recommend orthotics or diabetic shoes to prevent foot irritation from getting worse. Getting your toenails trimmed can be part of your routine foot care if you have diabetes.
People with diabetes can easily get wounds on their feet. Improper cutting or care of toenails and feet is the leading cause that could lead to toe finger and foot amputation.
It may require surgical removal (amputation) of a toe, a foot or part of a leg. Some people with diabetes are at higher risk than others. Factors that lead to a higher risk of amputation include: High blood sugar levels.
Wear socks or stockings with shoes. Wear socks without seams. Avoid tight-fitting socks and garters. Wear socks in bed if your feet are cold at night.
What to Look For in Diabetic Toenails. The first toenail change you'll notice in diabetic patients is likely to be discoloration. Most have some yellowing of the nails, though the shade and involvement can vary. Discoloring may start at the distal edge (tip) and run all the way to the root of the nail bed.
Diabetes can make pedicures dangerous: Reduced circulation can make injuries and infections more likely, and take longer to heal. Peripheral neuropathy can reduce feeling in your feet, making you unable to tell if the technician is hurting you, or if a hot footbath is scalding you.
Diabetics often have reduced blood flow to their feet, which may cause thicker toenails or numbness.
Also, don't soak your feet—that can dry your skin. Calluses occur more often and build up faster on the feet of people with diabetes. This is because there are high-pressure areas under the foot. Too much callus may mean that you will need therapeutic shoes and inserts.
Toenails that are too long or sharp can scratch or cut you, and if you have nerve damage, you may not know it's happened. If your toenails are too short, you run a much greater risk of developing an ingrown toenail. The sharp edge of your toenail grows into the soft skin that surrounds your nail.
Because diabetes frequently causes nerve damage, you may not be aware when you injure your toenail. Such an injury can create an opening for fungus, allowing an infection to take hold. Without treatment from a foot doctor, the infection can spread beyond the nail to the foot.
People with diabetes are more vulnerable to fungal infections than the general population, so toenail discoloration can be a warning sign of the condition or a complication in someone with a confirmed diagnosis. Poor circulation and reduced sensation in the feet often accompany diabetes.
Diabetic foot syndrome (DFS), as defined by the World Health Organization, is an “ulceration of the foot (distally from the ankle and including the ankle) associated with neuropathy and different grades of ischemia and infection”. Pathogenic events able to cause diabetic foot ulcers are multifactorial.
Cut toenails after bathing, when they are soft. Trim them straight across, then smooth with a nail file. Avoid cutting into the corners of toes. Don't let the corners of your toenails grow into the skin.
Longer toenails become an increasing risk for podiatric problems as you leave them to grow. Long nails are more likely to break and provide opportunities for fungal infections to take root, or for hangnails or tears to lead to painful exposure of your underlying nail bed.
They can happen over time when high blood sugar damages the nerves and blood vessels in the feet. The nerve damage, called diabetic neuropathy, can cause numbness, tingling, pain, or a loss of feeling in your feet.
When you have diabetes, high glucose levels in the blood can damage nerves and blood vessels. Because the nerves and blood vessels supplying the feet are so long and delicate, the feet — and especially the toes — often get affected first.
It can be an early sign of so-called "diabetic belly," a build-up of visceral fat in your abdomen which may be a symptom of type 2 diabetes and can increase your chances of developing other serious medical conditions.
When treating diabetic foot ulcers it is important to be aware of the natural history of the diabetic foot, which can be divided into five stages: stage 1, a normal foot; stage 2, a high risk foot; stage 3, an ulcerated foot; stage 4, an infected foot; and stage 5, a necrotic foot.