Risk factors for reamputation in patients with diabetic foot: A case-control study

Reamputation as a complication of diabetic foot ulcers presents a high economic burden and represents a therapeutic failure. It is paramount to identify as early as possible patients in whom a minor amputation may not be the best option. The purpose of this investigation was to do a case-controlled study to determine risk factors associated with re-amputation in patients with DFU (diabetic foot ulcers) at two University Hospitals.

Multicentric, observational, retrospective, case-control study from clinical records of 2 university hospitals. Our study included 420 patients, with 171 cases (re-amputations), and 249 controls. We performed a multivariate logistic regression analysis and time-to-event survival analysis to identify re-amputation risk factors.

Statistically significant risk factors were artery history of tobacco use (p = 0.001); male sex (p = 0.048); arterial occlusion in Doppler ultrasound (p = 0.001); percentage of stenosis in arterial ultrasound >50 % (p = 0.053); requirement of vascular intervention (p = 0.01); and microvascular involvement in photoplethysmography (p = 0.033). The most parsimonious regression model suggests that history of tobacco use, male sex, arterial occlusion in ultrasound, and percentage of stenosis in arterial ultrasound >50 % remained statistically significant. The survival analysis identified earlier amputations in patients with larger occlusion in arterial ultrasound, high leukocyte count, and elevated ESR.

Direct and surrogate outcomes in patients with diabetic foot ulcers identify vascular involvement as an important risk factor for reamputation.

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