The Impact of Hospitalization for Diabetic Foot Infection on Health-Related Quality of Life: Utilizing PROMIS

Diabetic foot infections (DFI) are an increasingly common cause of hospitalizations. Once hospitalized with DFI, many patients require some level of amputation, often undergoing multiple operations. With increasing importance on patient-centered metrics, self-reported health-related quality of life (HRQOL) tools have been developed. This prospective cohort study aimed assessed the impact of DFI on HRQOL. Two hundred twenty-four patients completed the 29-item Patient-Reported Outcome Measurement Information System (PROMIS) and 12-Item Short Form (SF-12) survey. Secondary outcomes using the Foot and Ankle Ability Measures survey were obtained and included in the analysis. The study group was comprised of hospitalized patients with DFIs (n = 120), and the control group was comprised of patients with diabetes who were evaluated for routine outpatient foot care (n = 104); diabetic foot screening, wound care, onychomycosis, and/or callosities. Using this cohort, a propensity score-matched sample of hospitalized patients with DFI (n = 35) and control group patients (n = 35) was created for comparative analysis. The 2-independent sample t test was used to test for group differences on each of the PROMIS subscale outcomes. Using PROMIS, we found that hospitalized patients with DFI reported significantly worse HRQOL in 6 of 7 subscales (physical function, anxiety, depression, fatigue, social role, pain intensity; p value range: .0001-.02) compared to outpatients with diabetes evaluated for routine foot care. There was no significant difference between the 2 groups on sleep disturbance (p = .22). Patients hospitalized for DFI report lower HRQOL compared to patients with diabetes receiving routine outpatient foot care.