Treating The Adverse Effects of Diabetes: Diabetic Foot Ulcers & Hyperbaric Medicine
This November, the team at Cutiscare is doing our part to help save limbs and lives—empowering patients and care teams with powerful solutions to fight diabetes-related foot wounds with Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT).
We’re confident that we’re making an impact with our game-changing therapies and wound care partners. Although the number of patients with chronic foot ulcers continues to grow, we find hyperbaric medicine has shown to have great success with treating the adverse effects of diabetes, like diabetic foot ulcers. We’re making a difference with our practice-based hyperbaric medicine, and on the front lines of patient wound care with comprehensive treatment plans.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, about one in ten Americans will have diabetes in 2022 - which equates to over 37 million people nationwide. According to the University of Michigan Health System, around 15% of those 37 million will develop a foot ulcer. And of those patients, approximately 15% will require an amputation.
Those numbers are simply unacceptable.
The goal of HBOT in treating chronic foot ulcers is always to avoid amputation and improve the patient’s quality of life. The National Institutes of Health, Library of Medicine, provided some context on HBOT in a recent article:
Finally, efforts should be made for the prevention of new ulcers or worsening of the existing ulcer, which occurs by offloading the pressure from the site by using walkers or therapeutic shoes. If the wound fails to heal in 30 days, then hyperbaric oxygen therapy can be considered. Since the wound has low oxygen supply, there is often delay in healing of the wound. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy improves the rate of wound healing and also reduces the rate of complications.
To have the best outcome a team of health care providers including primary care physician, podiatrist, a vascular surgeon, an infectious disease specialist and wound care nursing staff are imperative.
NIH provides some excellent touch points, especially on the importance of a comprehensive approach. But why should wound care professionals and practices of all sizes include hyperbaric oxygen therapy in their care plans?
From a pathophysiological perspective, the effect of hyperbaric oxygen treatment of diabetic foot wounds is to reverse the physiologic impediments caused by hypoxia. In a nutshell, hyperbaric oxygen increases the dissolved oxygen and the amount of oxygenated plasma dissolved in tissue in the wound margin.
From an efficacy perspective, HBOT treatments are reducing the number of lower extremity amputations. We know from experience how essential limb preservation procedures have become in our communities. Making a difference in communities is what we are all about at CūtisCare, especially during National Diabetes Month.
See what patients are saying about the life-changing value of HBOT treatments.
The entire CūtisCare team is dedicated to pursuing exceptional patient outcomes through comprehensive, dynamic, cost-effective, compliant, innovative HBO2 solutions. We provide hospitals, research facilities, clinics, and private practices nationwide with the solutions, physician mentoring, and knowledge they need to treat their patients’ chronic wound problems.
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy provides proven, CMS-approved treatments designed to provide exceptional patient outcomes, including:
- Improving your wound care patient’s quality of life
- Promoting the healing of chronic diabetic foot ulcers
- Reducing infections and tissue necrosis
- Reducing lower extremity amputation rates
Do you have patients with chronic diabetic foot wounds who need advanced HBO2 treatments?
Or do you just have some questions about wound care and Hyperbaric Medicine?
Wherever you are in your quest to improve your organization’s wound care capabilities, we’d love to share our 25 years of knowledge and experience providing HBOT solutions with you. Get in touch with one of our HBOT thought leaders today.