Diabetic foot ulcer patients can now look forward to angioplasty

PANJIM, AUG 11
Angioplasty and stent placement treatments have come as a respite to those suffering ‘diabetic foot ulcers’, hence overtaking surgery, an Interventional Cardiologist has said.
Addressing a press briefing, Dr Uday Khanolkar informed reporters that angioplasty has befit revascularization for blockages below the knee, where surgical bypass is not possible.
“Angioplasty for diabetic foot ulcers has advantages as it increases the blood flow and helps healing ulcers. It also prevents local infection from entering the blood stream which is a life threatening condition,” said the doctor.
He revealed that foot complications are common in patients suffering from diabetes followed by heavy smokers. 10 to 15 percent diabetic patients develop foot ulcer and with this increases the risk amputation by eight fold once an ulcer develops.
“The problem is noticed among diabetic patients above the age of 50 years. But the youngest case we encountered was of a 32-year-old patient who was a heavy smoker…It blocks the blood vessels. Diabetes is the greater risk than heart attack in this medical case,” said the Interventional Cardiologist.
The procedure, the doctor said is carried out at Apollo Victor Hospital at Margao wherein 77 procedures of the total 78 cases have been successfully performed. While, in one case, the patient’s limb had to be severed, as according to Khanolkar, the patient approached doctors after the infection had deepened.
“Not many Goan patients and doctors are aware of this procedure and hence we felt it a need to create awareness to help diabetic patients here,” he said. 
Meanwhile, Peripheral Vascular Disease (PVD), he informed, is a common problem wherein arteries carrying blood to legs or arms are either narrowed or clogged. “Its risk factors include diabetes, smoking, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, family history of cardiac or vascular disease, obesity and sedentary lifestyle,” he said adding that 15-20 percent suffer PVD and one-third are symptomatic.
Khandolkar suggested that patients should approach doctors at an early stage to prevent amputation in almost 100 percent of diabetic foots. Whereas, a little delay, he warned, may limit amputation to toes or below the ankle and in extreme delay the patient will have to undergo major amputation at the knee level or above.
The press note circulated at the briefing discloses that the procedure at the hospital costs Rs 57,000 and Stent Rs 52,000 with hospital stay of three days on an average.