School of Podiatric Medicine Publications
Foot Complications
Document Type
Book Chapter
Publication Date
6-2023
Abstract
Patient C was a 50-year-old diabetic male truck driver. He presented to the emergency department with a red, hot, painful, swollen right foot and lower leg. There were no open lesions with unilateral edema and diffuse erythema. A venous duplex ultrasound was negative for deep venous thrombosis. Laboratory data showed no leukocytosis. The patient was admitted, placed on broad spectrum I.V. antibiotics, and discharged three days later. He returned to the emergency department 3 days after discharge with the same complaint of persistent redness and swelling. A second venous ultrasound was negative for thrombosis, and he was discharged home with a new oral antibiotic and a referral to the podiatry clinic. After a 2 week delay in obtaining an appointment, the patient noted his right foot had changed shape and was flatter in the arch than the contralateral foot. The deformity progressed to ulceration requiring surgical intervention. This unfortunate outcome in which the correct diagnosis of acute Charcot neuroarthropathy was missed resulted in considerable patient morbidity and increased healthcare utilization.
Recommended Citation
Harkless, L. B., Shapiro, J., & Rodriguez-Saldana, J. (2023). Foot Complications. In J. Rodriguez-Saldana (Ed.), The Diabetes Textbook: Clinical Principles, Patient Management and Public Health Issues (pp. 1021–1039). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-25519-9_62
First Page
1021
Last Page
1039
Publication Title
The Diabetes Textbook: Clinical Principles, Patient Management and Public Health Issues
DOI
10.1007/978-3-031-25519-9_62
Comments
© 2023 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
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