CūtisCare, a leading provider of wound care management services to hospitals and physicians, is continuing our fight this month to raise awareness regarding diabetes and the available treatment options to help save limbs and lives.
According to the CDC, diabetes currently adversely impacts the lives of approximately 34 million Americans, and that number is continuing to increase each year. About 25% of people with diabetes will develop foot ulcers, and 1% end up with an amputation in their lifetime. However, as many as 85% of potential amputations can be avoided when advanced modalities, such as hyperbaric oxygen therapy, or HBOT, are added to a treatment plan.
There is good news on the horizon though. Many of these amputations are preventable. HBOT is one therapy that is showing great promise. Louis Pilati MD, CutisCare’s Medical Advisory Board Member, expounds on the manifold benefits of HBOT for patients with Wagner Grade 3 or higher:
The physiologic effect of hyperbaric oxygen treatment of the diabetic foot patient is to reverse the impediments caused by hypoxemia or below-normal level of oxygen in your blood. Hyperbaric oxygen increases the dissolved oxygen and the amount of oxygenated plasma dissolved in tissue. It also increases reactive oxygen and nitrogen species to increase growth factor synthesis, stem cell proliferation, diminished inflammatory response, and enhanced white blood cell killing of bacteria.
Thousands of hospitals and healthcare practices are still not equipped to provide limb-saving treatments, so many patients with diabetes are not aware that these treatment options exist. As a partner to the nation’s leading healthcare facilities, the team at CūtisCare is dedicated to bringing awareness to early prevention methods those with diabetes can take to prevent amputations that can result from foot ulcers and other large wounds. Visit cutiscareusa.com, as well as our social media channels, throughout November to access educational resources highlighting this life-saving treatment option, a foot care guide for how to reduce complications, take a Diabetes Risk Test, or even to find a treatment provider near you.