A microbiological study of diabetic foot lesions

The bacterial nature of infected foot lesions presenting to a diabetic unit during the course of twelve months was studied. Fifty-six swabs were obtained from 25 patients. Swabs were processed within ten minutes of being collected. An average of 3.3 organisms per swab were isolated, Staphylococcus aureus was the most common bacterial species isolated, while anaerobic bacteria comprised 10% of the isolates. Sensitivity testing of the isolates against commonly used antibiotics showed that the antimicrobial regimen that we have previously used empirically on such patients may not always be optimal.