New to the group names David, hopefully will be pestering people later , will give few details later TIA

[Davidh]

Hi , new to the group bit of advice if possible please , diagnosed with type 2 diabetes about 12 months ago , had painful big toe , podiatrist at doctors sent me to hospital podiatrist, basically have severe PAD , in both legs , have had all tests done and the toe is now black and necrotic , the surgeon has basically given me 2 options remove leg above the knee or have a very difficult operation lasting about 5 hours , am seeing him again on the 28th , to discuss what would be involved , to be truthful I thought he would just remove toe and that would be it , but amputation above knee different matter , at the moment still trying to process it , my concern is if one toe is virtually dead , and they do the major operation might I still need to have the toe/foot / leg removed anyway ? Just grasping out for any info really I know it will be a decision to make later , but amputation seems very frightening,,

 

[Inka]

Welcome @Davidh Sorry to hear you’re facing such a difficult decision. Did the doctor give you any information about success rates for the 5hr op to help you make a decision?

@MikeyBikey has had an amputation and might have some advice.

 

[MikeyBikey]

Hello and welcome to the forum @Davidh! Obviously not in the circumstances anyone would want.

As @Inka has said I lost my lower left leg to PAD during the 2020 lockdowns. I hope you are getting adequate pain relief as often the barrier between live and dead cells an inflammatory response is triggered which can lead to acute pain. I was on Tramadol bur not everyone can tolerate it. As it is late on a Friday night I will leave a fuller reply till the weekend. All the best, @MikeyBikey

 

[Ieva DUK]

Hi @Davidh and welcome to the forum, albeit on such difficult circumstances.

I'll second Inka on saying it will be worth speaking to your medical team directly in regards to operation success and everything else that follows afterwards. It will likely depend on your specific circumstances so even for those Users who have had a similar op, it could have a different outcome for you.
You might also find our helpline useful for a chat or some guidance (contact details are at the top right corner).

 

[Eddy Edson]

My only advice is to (a) get as much detail as you can from this doc about the op vs amputation risk/benefit trade-offs (b) absolutely get a second opinion as well.

I have PAD but thankfully it didn't go critical in the way yours has - so I don't have anything very useful to say apart from that.

However, I'd also recommend checking out the channel mentioned in this: https://forum.diabetes.org.uk/board...od-peripheral-artery-disease-resource.112483/

 

[Deb_l]

Oh goodness me, that’s not an easy decision to make. You must be struggling to come to terms with everything.

My mum has PAD and her vascular team are amazing. Mum doesn’t have surgical options as she’s nearly 93 and too risky but they put a lot of effort into treating her medically.

Make a big list of questions for your team, pros and cons of each option and make sure they explain everything to you in detail. Write everything down you want to know.

Good luck xx

 

[Halmoons]

Hello David
I had the same as you
One toe whent black the hospital removed in day surgery
But the damage had spread to the toe beside
Resulting in me have three toes removed but this was not enough
Last Christmas I had a below the knee amputation
Yes it's extremely frightening but it has saved my life
To be honest it's a hard choice you may have to make
It's hard to adjust to missing a limb or part of it
I wish you well

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

All the best for your difficult decision @Davidh - and for a swift post-op recovery and successful outcome after whichever procedure you opt for.