Northerner
Admin (Retired)
- Relationship to Diabetes
- Type 1
A surgical procedure sometimes offered to people with diabetes to reduce their risk of foot ulcers may have drawbacks.
Because of nerve damage resulting from diabetes, people can lose sensation in their feet and this can lead to recurrent ulcers on the soles. Lengthening the Achilles tendon can improve the situation by increasing ankle mobility, thus allowing pressure on the foot to be spread more evenly, and by reducing point-pressures while walking.
However, while Achilles tendon lengthening (ATL) can reduce ulcer recurrence in people with diabetes, it fails to improve their physical functioning or perceived disability, according to a study.
?Recurrent ulcers are a multifactorial problem, and an ATL is not a panacea for treatment,? said researchers from Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri.
http://www.tele-management.ca/2013/10/achilles-surgery-may-not-help-function-in-diabetes/
Because of nerve damage resulting from diabetes, people can lose sensation in their feet and this can lead to recurrent ulcers on the soles. Lengthening the Achilles tendon can improve the situation by increasing ankle mobility, thus allowing pressure on the foot to be spread more evenly, and by reducing point-pressures while walking.
However, while Achilles tendon lengthening (ATL) can reduce ulcer recurrence in people with diabetes, it fails to improve their physical functioning or perceived disability, according to a study.
?Recurrent ulcers are a multifactorial problem, and an ATL is not a panacea for treatment,? said researchers from Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri.
http://www.tele-management.ca/2013/10/achilles-surgery-may-not-help-function-in-diabetes/