Diabetes is a disease affecting over 30 million people in the US, or about 10% of the population, according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease. Impacts of the condition can spread through the systems in the body, and lead to a number of complications, including heart, kidney and dental diseases, stroke, eye and foot problems, and even nerve damage. What is diabetes, and how do conditions like diabetic neuropathy affect the feet and skin?
What is Diabetes?
The body is a complex organism with several inter-operating systems, and dietary and lifestyle choices impact the health of each of these systems. Diabetes is a condition that develops when your blood glucose levels are too high because hormone imbalances prevent the sugar from getting into your cells to be used as energy.
- There are a number of different forms of Diabetes, and 95% of adult cases of the condition are Type 2, caused by dietary and lifestyle choices.
- Diabetes is the condition caused when the pancreas doesn’t make enough—or any—insulin to bring the blood sugar into the cells.
- Because diabetes impacts blood circulation, conditions in the body can get serious enough to cause intense pain, like in diabetic neuropathy, or even require amputation.
How Does Diabetes Impact Your Health?
Surprisingly, the feet are common areas impacted by the development of diabetes, and there are two main problems that can introduce a host of other complications:
- Wounds on the skin that won’t heal. Peripheral Vascular Disease is a condition that refers to the poor blood flow in the arms and legs. High blood glucose levels can create thickening and stickiness in the blood, which makes it more difficult for the heart to pump into the small vessels in the periphery of the body. With poor blood flow to the feet, it can be difficult for any wounds to heal and for the body to fend off pathogens like fungus, bacteria, and viruses like warts.
- Sensations of fire and ice on the skin. Uncontrolled diabetes damages nerves in the feet and legs, which might prevent you from feeling warning sensations like heat, cold or pain. Often it results in painful tingling and needling sensations or even the numbness of nerve damage, called diabetic neuropathy.
What are Some Ways to Relieve Pain from Neuropathy?
Luckily, advancements in science and healing technologies have created new options for managing neuropathy symptoms. Treatments should be customized for each patient based on the source of the problem, but they should effectively manage pain and also support the restoration of the function of the damaged nerves. Multidisciplinary approaches could include peripheral nerve blocks, H-Wave and Cold Laser Therapies, treatments like Varithena® and ClariVein®IC for vein disease.
Need New Options for your Diabetic Neuropathy Pain?
Atlanta Medical Clinic’s physicians can help. We successfully treat all types of acute or chronic pain, using safe, minimally invasive, and clinically proven medical treatments and therapies. Through our passionate commitment to providing responsible pain management, we can help patients find an understanding of their condition, the options available for their diagnosis, and reliable pain relief. Please contact us today to schedule a consultation for more information about how we can help you.