Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Pathways to diabetic limb amputation. Basis for prevention.

R E Pecoraro1, G E Reiber, E M Burgess

  • 1Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle.

Diabetes Care
|May 1, 1990
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Recent advances in the treatment of compound fractures.

Plantation health·2010
Same author

Postoperative management of transtibial amputations in VA hospitals.

Journal of rehabilitation research and development·2001
Same author

A comparison of diabetic foot ulcer patients managed in VHA and non-VHA settings.

Journal of rehabilitation research and development·2001
Same author

Recreational activities of lower-limb amputees with prostheses.

Journal of rehabilitation research and development·2001
Same author

The use of CAD/CAM technology in prosthetics and orthotics--current clinical models and a view to the future.

Journal of rehabilitation research and development·2001
Same author

Survival following lower-limb amputation in a veteran population.

Journal of rehabilitation research and development·2001

Diabetic limb amputations often result from multiple factors, with minor trauma leading to ulceration and poor wound healing being a common pathway. Identifying these causes can help prevent lower-extremity amputations in diabetic patients.

Area of Science:

  • Diabetic Limb Amputation Research
  • Vascular Surgery
  • Podiatry

Background:

  • Lower-extremity amputations are a severe complication for diabetic patients.
  • Understanding the multifactorial causes of these amputations is crucial for prevention.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To define the causal pathways leading to lower-extremity amputations in diabetic patients.
  • To estimate the proportion of amputations attributable to specific component causes.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective analysis of 80 lower-extremity amputations in diabetic patients (1984-1987).
  • Empirical determination of causal pathways by synthesizing objective and subjective data.
  • Identification of 23 unique causal pathways and calculation of component cause proportions.

Related Experiment Videos

Main Results:

  • Eight common pathways accounted for 73% of amputations.
  • Minor trauma, cutaneous ulceration, and wound-healing failure, often with infection/gangrene, comprised 72% of pathways.
  • Ischemia (46%), infection (59%), neuropathy (61%), faulty wound healing (81%), ulceration (84%), gangrene (55%), and minor trauma (81%) were significant contributors.
  • A preventable event, often minor trauma causing skin injury, preceded 69-80 amputations.

Conclusions:

  • Diabetic limb amputations typically result from complex interactions of multiple factors.
  • Minor trauma initiating a cascade of ulceration, poor healing, and infection is a frequent pathway.
  • Defining these causal pathways offers opportunities for targeted interventions to prevent diabetic limb loss.