Patient/caregiver were instructed on the staging and grading of diabetic foot ulcers as follows:
- The severity of diabetic foot ulcers can be graded and staged, depending on the depth of the wound, extent of tissue involvement, and presence of complications.
- The grading of diabetic foot ulcers could vary from a closed or healed wound with potential to recur anytime in future to an open wound. Risk factors contributing to recurrence of the diabetic foot ulcers could include one or a combination of the following: ongoing poorly controlled blood sugars, continuing compromised blood supply to the distal lower extremities, noncompliance with smoking cessation recommendations, shearing or mechanical stress at the involved skin site, and so on.
- The open wounds could vary from wounds being plain superficial and not involving deeper structures like tendons and bones to wounds penetrating to the depth and involving tendons, bones, and joint capsules.
- The staging of diabetic foot ulcers could vary from uncomplicated wounds to presence of complications, such as, infection, dead tissue, and/or ischemia.
- The deeper a diabetic foot ulcer is with increased number of complications, the higher is the grading and staging of the ulcer and the harder it is to heal.
