Prevalence of diabetic foot amongst adults with diabetes mellitus in northern Sudan: A cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and associated factors for diabetic foot (DF) amongst patients with diabetes Mellites (DM) in Nahr an Nil State (River Nile State), Sudan.

METHODS

We conducted a cross-sectional study between May and August 2018. DM patients were examined for DF, and clinical data were collected through a questionnaire.

RESULTS

A total of 2048 DM patients were enrolled in the study. Their median (interquartile range) age was 58 (15) years. Over half (54.2%) of the patients were female. The median (interquartile range) of the duration of diabetes was 5 (6) years. In this sample, 70.1% of the patients had type 2 DM and 47.6% had hypertension as well. Of all enrolled patients, 21.2% had normal weight, 1.2% were underweight, 37.2% were overweight and 40.4% were obese. Two hundred and sixty (12.7%) patients had DF. Multivariate regression analyses showed that age [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 1.21; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.18-1.24] and duration of DM (AOR = 1.09; 95% CI: 1.05-1.14) were positively associated with DF. Moreover, type 2 DM (AOR = 1.77; 95% CI: 1.17-2.68), family history of DM (AOR = 1.5; 95% CI: 1.07-2.09), hypertension (AOR = 2.93; 95% CI: 2.07-4.16) and obesity (AOR = 2.86; 95% CI: 1.70-4.81) were associated with DF. There was no significant association between DF and gender or overweight status.

CONCLUSION

This study found a high prevalence of DF. Older age, type 2 DM, duration of DM, family history of DM and hypertension are associated with DF.