KARACHI: Medical science experts and senior healthcare professionals called for establishing around 3,000 diabetic foot clinics with telehealth facilities throughout the country, especially at district, tehsil and taluka levels to prevent around 1,000 amputations that were daily being carried out due to diabetic foot ulcers in Pakistan.

Attending the international moot titled ‘NADEP Footcon 2022’ organised by the National Association of Diabetes Educators of Pakistan (NADEP) in collaboration with the Baqai Institute of Diabetology and Endocrinology (BIDE), the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), the D-Foot International and other organisations, the experts and professionals urged the authorities to make arrangements for provision of specialised footwear for people with diabetes as specially-designed shoes and insoles had proved to be effective in preventing amputations and saving limbs of 90 per cent people living with the disease.

In presence of health experts which attended the conference from several countries of the world as well as other cities of Pakistan, they said that training of general physicians and awareness about prevention of diabetes and its complications was also a need of the hour.

“As per IDF data, around 33 million people are living with diabetes in Pakistan, and of them, three to four million people develop diabetic foot ulcers, which is a serious complication of the type-2 diabetes. Around 400,000 face amputations of lower limbs annually in Pakistan, 50pc of which can be prevented with establishment of around 3,000 specialised diabetic foot clinics in Pakistan”, NADEP President Dr Saif-ul-Haq told concluding ceremony of the conference the other day.

International conference organised by NADEP concluded

Chairing the conference, Dr Zahid Miyan said with the help of multidisciplinary care, trainings and awareness, around 50pc amputations had been prevented, and called for using the technology to reach a maximum number people with diabetes to make them aware of its complications, especially diabetic foot ulcers.

He said there was an urgent need to spread awareness among healthcare professionals as well as common people so that diabetic foot ulcers and other complications of the diabetes could be prevented in the country.

In addition to training doctors, there was a need to train thousands of nurses and take them on board in management of diabetes in Pakistan, he said adding that most of the complications of the lifestyle disease could be prevented by increasing awareness and educating the masses.

Tanzanian expert of diabetic foot ulcers Dr Zulfikar G. Abbas spoke on the multidisciplinary management of diabetic foot ulcers, and said early diagnosis of this condition could prevent further progression of the disease.

Published in Dawn, October 18th, 2022