Alexandrescu V and Hubermont G
Approximately 15% of diabetic patients will develop a foot ulcer during their lifetime and among them, 14% to 43% will require amputation [1-3]. Peripheral neuropathy, such as chronic inferior limb ischemia, is a common complication of diabetes mellitus, affecting approximately 60% of diabetic patients and up to 80% of diabetic patients with foot ulcers [1-4]. Although the neuropathic etiology is dominant in 45% of diabetic foot ulcers, both ischemic and neuropathic risk factors are found in up to 35% of cases [1-4] Current clinical management, focused on the endovascular approach as a primary treatment for critical limb ischemia (CLI), is highly feasible and shows low complication rates [5,6] and limb salvage rates comparable to surgery [5-8]. Although diabetic neuropathy has already been reported as an important risk factor for limb loss independently from limb-threatening ischemia, [1-4] there is little information on its direct effect on the outcome after surgical and endovascular reconstruction. Thus, the aim of the present study was to analyze the effect of concomitant peripheral neuropathy on critical limb ischemia in diabetic patients initially treated by endovascular methods. A retrospective design was used to assess clinical outcome in diabetic patients with ischemic foot wounds with and without concomitant peripheral neuropathy.
