Successes and pitfalls in the healing of neuropathic forefoot ulcerations with the IPOS postoperative shoe

Unnecessary amputations can be avoided with the healing of foot ulcerations in neuropathic feet. Traditional approaches have relied on relieving plantar and other extrinsic foot pressures. A retrospective review was performed of the office records of patients with Wagner grade 1 and 2 neuropathic forefoot ulcerations who were prescribed an IPOS (Niagara Falls, NY) postoperative shoe. A total of .33 patients were in the chart review. Twenty-three of these patients were located and agreed to participate in a telephone survey. Patients showed a compliance of 78%. Seventy-seven percent of the patients healed their ulcers and wore prescription inserts and extra-depth shoes at a mean of 8 weeks. Seventy-eight percent of our telephone survey patients were either satisfied or satisfied with reservations. Problems or complications from wearing the IPOS postoperative shoe occurred with 38% of all patients.