Mind the gap: disparity between research funding and costs of care for diabetic foot ulcers.

摘要

Diabetic foot Ulceration (DFU) is a serious and prevalent complication of diabetes, ultimately affecting some 25% of those living with the disease (1). DFUs have a consistently negative impact on quality of life and productivity as diabetic patients report stigma, social isolation, unemployment, and depression (2-5). Patients with DFUs also have morbidity and mortality rates equivalent to aggressive forms of cancer (2). These ulcers remain an important risk factor for lower-extremity amputation as up to 85% of amputations are preceded by foot ulcers (6). It should therefore come as no surprise that some 33% of the $ 116 billion in direct costs generated by the treatment of diabetes and its complications was linked to the treatment of foot ulcers (7). Another study has suggested that 25-50% of the costs related to inpa-tient diabetes care may be directly related to DFUs (2).