You are here: Home Page > Press Release
NEWS RELEASE
15 JUNE 2009
Figures revealed today show that the NHS spends £600 million a year on treating foot problems in people with diabetes, and a staggering £252 million of this is spent on amputation*. As part of its annual Feet for Life month in June, the Society of Chiropodists and Podiatrists (SCP) and leading health charity Diabetes UK are raising awareness around diabetes and foot health, and how to manage and prevent diabetic foot disease.
Approximately three million people in the UK are currently living with diabetes** with around four hundred new cases diagnosed every day*. According to figures, diabetes climbed 74 per cent between 1997 and 2003 and the number of people with diabetes in the UK is set to rise to more than four million by 2025**.
Foot problems commonly develop in people with diabetes and can quickly become serious. People with diabetes are at risk of damage to the nerves (neuropathy) and blood supply (ischaemia) to their feet. Both neuropathy and ischaemia can lead to foot ulcers and slow-healing wounds which, if they become infected, can result in amputation.
Nita Parmar, SCP spokesperson, says: “Many people with diabetes are unaware that foot problems are common and could even be life-threatening. They also place an enormous financial burden on people with diabetes, their families and the healthcare sector.”
Nita continues: “The economic and psychological impact of limb loss is immense. In many cases, people can no longer provide for themselves or their families; they become dependent on the care and support of others, and often cannot maintain previous levels of social contact. Each amputation costs the NHS around £13,500 with long hospital stays, yet up to 85 per cent of all diabetic amputations can be prevented with specialist podiatrist foot care.
There are only a handful of specialist foot units in the NHS. It is essential that strategic health authorities set up specialist podiatric foot care protection teams to prevent damaging and costly foot problems occurring.”
As part of this year’s Diabetes Week (15-20 June), Diabetes UK is calling on PCTs to work together with hospitals to ensure provision of high-quality specialist care for the management and prevention of diabetic foot disease as set out in a new Diabetes UK/NHS Diabetes report ‘Putting Feet First’. The report is being launched alongside a new care pathway to support implementation and a ‘top tips’ resource to inform people with diabetes of the foot care they should demand.
Diabetes UK’s Head of Healthcare and Policy, Bridget Turner, said: “Foot injuries or ulcers in people with diabetes need to be assessed as soon as possible by an expert team. The longer they are left untreated, the greater the risk of deterioration and loss of the limb, which has devastating effects on a person's mobility and mood, causing disfigurement and reducing independence. The consequences of diabetic foot disease are devastating, and it must not be ignored.”
SCP’s Nita Parmar adds: “Joined up thinking between PCTs and hospitals is needed to prevent unnecessary amputations.”
ENDS
* Diabetes UK/NHS
** Taken from NHS statistics
Notes to Editor (SCP)
- The Society of Chiropodists and Podiatrists is the leading professional body for registered chiropodists and podiatrists in the UK. In short, they’re the UK’s experts for everything and anything to do with feet. Podiatry (also known as chiropody) is the diagnosis and treatment of diseases and other disorders of the feet.
For further information on the Society of Chiropodists and Podiatrists and the "Feet for Life" campaign please contact Becky Lockett or Kate Ward at 3 Monkeys Communications on 020 7009 3100 / feetforlife@3-monkeys.co.uk
Notes to Editor (Diabetes UK)
- Diabetes UK is the leading charity for the three million people in the UK with diabetes. It is our 75th Anniversary in 2009 and events to mark this special occasion will be taking place around the country. We aim to spend more than £8 million on research in 2009 as well as campaigning and providing information and support. During our 75th Anniversary year, we hope you will be able to join in and support us so that we can carry on improving the lives of people with diabetes into the future. For more information visit www.diabetes.org.uk.
Soc Chiropodists & Podiatrists 16th June 2009
Categories: Diabetes, Footnote
Story read 11764 times
