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Friday, 19 September 2014
| ArabMedicare.com | Staff Reporter
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Diabetic patients in the UAE
must exercise caution in
managing wounds to avoid
complications
(Dubai, UAE) --
The biggest challenge in
wound management today is
dealing with disease related
wounds, especially ones that
are difficult to heal and
could easily become chronic.
Conditions such as lack of
circulation and nerve damage
brought about by diabetes,
which is highly prevalent in
the UAE, leaves patients
with a lack of sensory
perception in the feet. This
leads to horrible ulcers in
the feet that may end up in
loss of limb.
Emilio Galea, Head of
Nursing Education, Al Mafraq
Hospital, Abu Dhabi, UAE,
spoke about the significance
of wound care, skin
integrity and wound
management in the UAE at the
Wound Care Conference during
the Patient Safety Middle
East Exhibition &
Conferences that was
recently held at the Dubai
International Convention &
Exhibition Centre, 16-18
September, 2014.
"In 2013, six countries from
the Middle East and North
Africa were among the
world's 10 highest for
prevalence of diabetes and
impaired glucose tolerance.
By 2020, 32% of the adult
UAE population may have
diabetes or pre-diabetes
which could bring about
conditions that cause ulcers
which need constant care and
attention or they will lead
to loss of the limb, mostly
the lower extremities.'
According to the
International Diabetes
Federation, in 2013, every
20 seconds, somewhere in the
world, a lower limb is lost
due to diabetes. Mr. Galea
highlights that the most
important advice one can
give to diabetics is to
inspect their feet daily and
visit a healthcare
professional at least once a
year, and never to ignore
any trauma to the lower
limb, however small they
think it is.
'It is also important to pay
attention to the geriatric
population who is also at
risk to healthcare related
wounds. This is mainly due
to the fragile skin in older
people, they can present
with anything from a minor
skin peel to devastating
wounds such as pressure
ulcers (bed sores) when they
are bed bound,' explains Mr.
Galea.
Pressure ulcers are another
major cause of concern
worldwide. Development of
pressure ulcers has been
associated with a 4.5-times
greater risk of death and,
in the US alone, there is an
estimated 1 million people
affected each year, leading
to an annual cost of
approximately $US1.6
billion.
Experts suggest that
successful treatment of
difficult wounds requires
assessment of the entire
patient and not just the
wound. It is important to
find out if the patient
suffers from any conditions
that could hinder the proper
healing of the wound and
these must be considered
prior to treatment as they
have a direct connection to
the degree at which the
wound heals or worsens.
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