Foot self-care practices among diabetic patients attending a teaching hospital in Tamil Nadu, India

IntroductionDiabetes is a common non-communicable disease in the world. Diabetic foot ulcer is a common complication of diabetes mellitus. Awareness and practice of foot self-care play a major role in the prevention of complications due to diabetic neuropathy.MethodsDescriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among diabetic patients from Sep 2022 to Feb 2023. A semi-structured questionnaire containing four parts including socio-demographic including clinical details, questions related to knowledge and practice of foot self-care, and clinical examination was used. Ten grams monofilament and 128 Hz tuning fork were used to assess the sensation of the foot.ResultsA total of 211 patients were included. The average age was found to be 58.4 ± 10.0 years and the majority were females (64.0%). The mean percentage score of knowledge on diabetes and foot self-care was found to be 59.6 ± 27.5 and 55.1 ± 11.9, respectively. Participants with low knowledge scores and those who do not engage in regular physical activity had significant poor foot care practices. The majority (54.5%) of the participants had at least one of the clinical problems related to diabetic foot. The most common problem was found to be heel fissures (29.4%), followed by deformed nails (15.2%), callus (5.2%), toe web infection (3.3%), and ulcer (2.8%). Monofilament test and vibration was not detectable in 12.3% and 15.2%, respectively.ConclusionMore than half of the participants were found to have good diabetic foot self-care practices. Diabetics having good knowledge on foot care and involving in regular physical activity showed good foot self-care practices.