Diabetic Podiatry

Podiatrists are on hand at every stage of diabetes whether it be for prevention of foot problems, regular diabetic check ups, or for assisting you with foot problems or injuries.

Podiatrists are one of the essential professions in diabetic care, and have an important role to play in preventing and managing foot complications in people with diabetes. Feet can be greatly affected by diabetes and should be monitored regularly for any changes. It is advised that low risk diabetic feet be checked every 6-12 months for complications and high risk feet be checked every 3-6 months.

Why is Podiatry Essential for Diabetics?

Diabetes can causes nerve damage known as peripheral neuropathy in the feet.
Diabetes can affect the circulation in the feet, and poor circulation can affect how the body heals.
People with diabetes are more prone to foot infections
Diabetic complications can lead to foot ulcers and amputation
Diabetes can affect the joints and make them stiffer
With regular check ups from your Podiatrist, most of these foot problems can be prevented.

Skin & Nail Care for Diabetic Feet

Due to an increased risk of foot complications, diabetics are often advised to get their toenails cut by a podiatrist. Whilst not all diabetics need their nails cut, those at risk of circulation problems, have a loss of feeling in their feet, eye site problems or a decrease in flexibility are often advised to see a podiatrist for routine skin and nail care and maintenance.

What Does A Diabetic Foot Assessment Involve?

Your usual Diabetic foot assessment may include some simple tests to determine your risk factors such as:

Visual Foot Assessments
Circulation testing - checking for pulses in the feet or via the use of a doppler ultrasound etc
Sensation Testing - gentle pressure testing and vibration recognition testing etc
Gait Analysis - watching you walk
Skin or Nail care

High Risk or Low Risk?

It is important to find out whether your feet are at high or low risk of developing diabetic foot complications. A podiatrist can carry out an easy and painless check on your feet to determine whether your feet have a low or high risk of developing more serious problems.

Low risk Diabetic feet: These feet have normal sensation, good blood flow and are generally in good condition. However it is important to know that low risk feet can become high risk feet without symptoms, so 6 monthly checks are still important.

High Risk Diabetic Feet: People with neuropathy, poor circulation, or those who have had a foot ulcer or amputation in the past are classified as high risk of foot complications. Feet with corns, calluses, cracked heels, or deformities like claw toes also have increased risk especially if poor feeling and/or decreased blood flow are also present.

If you have high risk feet you should have them checked by your podiatrist every 3 – 6 months. It is generally recommended that these people also have their nails cut by their podiatrist to help eliminate risk factors associated with cutting toenails.

> Skin and Nail Care For Diabetics

Do I have Other Risk Factors?

Diabetic feet are at risk because diabetes can cause damage to the nerves and the blood supply. This damage is more likely if:

You have had diabetes for a long time
Your blood glucose levels have been too high for an extended period
You smoke
You are inactive.

Do I Need A Referral?

No referral is required to see a podiatrist privately. If you have Private health insurance, you may be entitled to a rebate, which can be claimed automatically at the time of consult at any of our clinics.

Medicare may provide a rebate on podiatry fees if you have a chronic condition. To access medicare funding, you must be referred by your doctor as part of a suitable GP management or care plan. Where this Medicare rebate exists, Podantics will bulk bill these services so that you pay no out of pocket expenses.

Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) gold card holders are entitled to free podiatry services from private podiatrists. All they need to do is get a DVA specific referral from their doctor before hand.