Ten-Year Clinical Analysis of Diabetic Leg Amputees

The clinical characteristics of 234 amputees admitted to the National Taiwan University Hospital during a 10-year period were analyzed. Diabetes mellitus accounted for 37.2%( 87 cases) of the amputations and was the most commonly associated disease. Malignancy was the second cause of amputation(16.2%). Traffic accidents and atherosclerosis ( without diabetes mellitus) each accounted for about 13% of the amputations. Below- knee amputation was the most commonly performed procedure among the diabetics, while above-knee, below-knee and ray ammputations were roughly equallyperformed among non-diabetic patients. Reamputations were done in 16 diabetic and 12 non-diabetic patients, mostly within a short period of time after the first amputation. Four of the diabetic reamputations and nine of the non-diabetic reamputations were performed on the same side as the first amputation. The mean±standard error of admission days and total expenses for each episode of amputation were 36.2±2.7 days and 116.5±1. 7 thousand New Taiwan dollars for the non-diabetics and 41.3±4.0 days and 134.0±16.0 thousand New Taiwan dollars for the diabetics, respectively. We concluded thatL: 1) diabetes mellitus was the main cause of amputation; 2) diabetes mellitus was associated with a higher rate of reamputations of the contralateral legs; and 3) a multidisciplinary foot-care team is essential for the management of lower leg amputations.#0295