The unique multidisciplinarity of diabetes-related foot disease.

Few diseases globally require treatment from so many different disciplines as diabetes-related foot disease. At least 25 different professionals may be involved: casting technicians, dermatologists, diabetes (educator) nurses, diabetologists, dieticians, endocrinologists, general practitioners, human movement scientists, infectious diseases experts, microbiologists, nuclear medicine physicians, orthopaedic surgeons, orthotists, pedorthists, physical therapists, plastic surgeons, podiatric surgeons, podiatrists, prosthetists, psychologists, radiologists, social workers, tissue viability physicians, vascular surgeons, and wound care nurses. A shared vocabulary and shared treatment goals and recommendations are then essential. The International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot (IWGDF) has produced guidelines and supporting documents to stimulate and support shared and multidisciplinary evidence-based treatment in diabetes-related foot disease. In this special virtual issue of Diabetes/Metabolism Research and Reviews, all 21 documents of the 2023 update of the IWGDF Guidelines are bundled, added with a further 6 reviews from multidisciplinary experts to drive future research and clinical innovations, based on their contributions to the International Symposium on the Diabetic Foot. We hope the readers will enjoy this special virtual issue, and widely implement the knowledge shared here in their daily clinical practice and research endeavours with the goal to improve the care for people with diabetes-related foot disease.

Gap analysis of diabetes-related foot disease management systems in Pacific Islands Countries and Territories.

BACKGROUND: Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs) are known to have high prevalence of Diabetes Mellitus and high incidence of diabetes-related foot disease. Diabetes-related foot disease can lead to lower limb amputation and is associated with poor outcomes, with increased morbidity and mortality. The purpose of this study was to gain a better understanding of diabetes-related foot disease management in selected countries in PICTs and to identify potential barriers in management of diabetes-related foot disease management in the region. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was sent to eleven hospitals across six selected PICTs. The survey instrument was designed to provide an overview of diabetes-related foot disease (number of admissions, and number of lower limb amputations over 12 months) and to identify clinical services available within each institution. Two open-ended questions (free text responses) were included in the instrument to explore initiatives that have helped to improve management and treatment of diabetes-related foot diseases, as well as obstacles that clinicians have encountered in management of diabetes-related foot disease. The survey was conducted over 6 weeks. RESULTS: Seven hospitals across four countries provided responses. Number of admissions and amputations related to diabetes-related foot disease were only reported as an estimate by clinicians. Diabetes-related foot disease was managed primarily by general medicine physician, general surgeon and/or orthopaedic surgeon in the hospitals surveyed, as there were no subspecialty services in the region. Only one hospital had access to outpatient podiatry. Common themes identified around barriers faced in management of diabetes-related foot disease by clinicians were broadly centred around resource availability, awareness and education, and professional development. CONCLUSION: Despite the high prevalence of diabetes-related foot disease within PICTs, there appears to be a lack of functional multi-disciplinary foot services (MDFs). To improve the outcomes for diabetes-related foot disease patients in the region, there is a need to establish functional MDFs and engage international stakeholders to provide ongoing supports in the form of education, mentoring, as well as physical resources.

A qualitative exploration of the experiences of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people using a real-time video-based telehealth service for diabetes-related foot disease.

INTRODUCTION: Diabetes-related foot disease (DFD) is one of the most prevalent causes of global hospitalisation and morbidity, and it accounts for up to 75% of lower-extremity amputations globally. The 5-year mortality rate following any amputation ranges from 53% to 100%. Early identification of wounds and multidisciplinary management can reduce amputation rates by 39-56%. Rural and remote communities and Indigenous populations are disproportionately affected by DFD. This is reflected in amputation rates, which are much higher for Indigenous than for non-Indigenous Australians and for those in very remote areas than for those in major cities or inner regional areas. The large geographical spread of the population in Australia is a substantial barrier for those providing or accessing health services, particularly multidisciplinary and specialist services, which undoubtedly contributes to poorer DFD outcomes in rural and remote communities. METHODS: A real-time, video-based telehealth service for DFD management was established at the Royal Adelaide Hospital Vascular Services clinic to improve access to specialist services for rural and remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. An exploratory qualitative study that utilised one-on-one, semi-structured interviews was conducted with 11 participants who identified as Aboriginal and who had participated in the telehealth foot service. Interviews were transcribed, de-identified and analysed using thematic analysis, using an inductive approach. RESULTS: Four interrelated themes emerged. 'Practical benefits of staying home' describes the reduced burden of travel and advantages of having local healthcare providers and support people at consultations. 'Access to specialists and facilities' highlights how some participants felt that there was a lack of appropriate facilities in their area and appreciated the improved access telehealth provided. 'Feeling reassured that a specialist has seen their feet' reflects the positive impact on wellbeing that participants experienced when their feet were seen by specialist health staff. 'Facilitates communication' describes how participants felt included in consultations and how seeing a person on screen assisted conversation. CONCLUSION: The advantages of real-time, video-based telehealth go beyond reduced travel burden and improved access to specialist care. This model of care may facilitate relationship-building, patient wellbeing, and feelings of trust and safety for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander DFD patients.

Psychosocial and socioeconomic factors are most predictive of health status in patients with claudication.

BACKGROUND: As a key treatment goal for patients with symptomatic peripheral artery disease (PAD), improving health status has also become an important end point for clinical trials and performance-based care. An understanding of patient factors associated with 1-year PAD health status is lacking in patients with PAD. METHODS: The health status of 1073 consecutive patients with symptomatic PAD in the international multicenter PORTRAIT (Patient-Centered Outcomes Related to Treatment Practices in Peripheral Arterial Disease: Investigating Trajectories) registry was measured at baseline and 1 year with the Peripheral Artery Questionnaire (PAQ). The association of 47 patient characteristics with 1-year PAQ scores was assessed using a random forest algorithm. Variables of clinical significance were retained and included in a hierarchical multivariable linear regression model predicting 1-year PAQ summary scores. RESULTS: The mean age of patients was 67.7 ± 9.3 years, and 37% were female. Variables with the highest importance ranking in predicting 1-year PAQ summary score were baseline PAQ summary score, Patient Health Questionnaire-8 depression score, Generalized Anxiety Disorder-2 anxiety score, new onset symptom presentation, insurance status, current or prior diagnosis of depression, low social support, initial invasive treatment, duration of symptoms, and race. The addition of 19 clinical variables in an extended model marginally improved the explained variance in 1-year health status (from R2 0.312 to 0.335). CONCLUSIONS: Patients' 1-year PAD-specific health status, as measured by the PAQ, can be predicted from 10 mostly psychosocial and socioeconomic patient characteristics including depression, anxiety, insurance status, social support, and symptoms. These characteristics should be validated and tested in other PAD cohorts so that this model can inform risk adjustment and prediction of PAD health status in comparative effectiveness research and performance-based care.

Practical guidelines on the prevention and management of diabetes-related foot disease (IWGDF 2023 update).

Diabetes-related foot disease results in a major global burden for patients and the healthcare system. The International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot (IWGDF) has been producing evidence-based guidelines on the prevention and management of diabetes-related foot disease since 1999. In 2023, all IWGDF Guidelines have been updated based on systematic reviews of the literature and formulation of recommendations by multidisciplinary experts from all over the world. In addition, a new guideline on acute Charcot neuro-osteoarthropathy was created. In this document, the IWGDF Practical Guidelines, we describe the basic principles of prevention, classification and management of diabetes-related foot disease based on the seven IWGDF Guidelines. We also describe the organisational levels to successfully prevent and treat diabetes-related foot disease according to these principles and provide addenda to assist with foot screening. The information in these practical guidelines is aimed at the global community of healthcare professionals who are involved in the care of persons with diabetes. Many studies around the world support our belief that implementing these prevention and management principles is associated with a decrease in the frequency of diabetes-related lower-extremity amputations. The burden of foot disease and amputations is increasing at a rapid rate, and comparatively more so in middle to lower income countries. These guidelines also assist in defining standards of prevention and care in these countries. In conclusion, we hope that these updated practical guidelines continue to serve as a reference document to aid healthcare providers in reducing the global burden of diabetes-related foot disease.

Definitions and criteria for diabetes-related foot disease (IWGDF 2023 update).

Multiple disciplines are involved in the management of diabetes-related foot disease and a common vocabulary is essential for clear communication. Based on the systematic reviews of the literature that form the basis of the International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot (IWGDF) Guidelines, the IWGDF has developed a set of definitions and criteria for diabetes-related foot disease. This document describes the 2023 update of these definitions and criteria. We suggest these definitions be used consistently in both clinical practice and research, to facilitate clear communication with people with diabetes-related foot disease and between professionals around the world.

Effectiveness of bedside investigations to diagnose peripheral artery disease among people with diabetes mellitus: A systematic review.

As a progressive disease process, early diagnosis and ongoing monitoring and treatment of lower limb peripheral artery disease (PAD) is critical to reduce the risk of diabetes-related foot ulcer (DFU) development, non-healing of wounds, infection and amputation, in addition to cardiovascular complications. There are a variety of non-invasive tests available to diagnose PAD at the bedside, but there is no consensus as to the most diagnostically accurate of these bedside investigations or their reliability for use as a method of ongoing monitoring. Therefore, the aim of this systematic review was to first determine the diagnostic accuracy of non-invasive bedside tests for identifying PAD compared to an imaging reference test and second to determine the intra- and inter-rater reliability of non-invasive bedside tests in adults with diabetes. A database search of Medline and Embase was conducted from 1980 to 30 November 2022. Prospective and retrospective investigations of the diagnostic accuracy of bedside testing in people with diabetes using an imaging reference standard and reliability studies of bedside testing techniques conducted in people with diabetes were eligible. Included studies of diagnostic accuracy were required to report adequate data to calculate the positive likelihood ratio (PLR) and negative likelihood ratio (NLR) which were the primary endpoints. The quality appraisal was conducted using the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies and Quality Appraisal of Reliability quality appraisal tools. From a total of 8517 abstracts retrieved, 40 studies met the inclusion criteria for the diagnostic accuracy component of the review and seven studies met the inclusion criteria for the reliability component of the review. Most studies investigated the diagnostic accuracy of ankle -brachial index (ABI) (N = 38). In people with and without DFU, PLRs ranged from 1.69 to 19.9 and NLRs from 0.29 to 0.84 indicating an ABI <0.9 increases the likelihood of disease (but the extent of the increase ranges from a small to large amount) and an ABI within the normal range (≥0.90 and <1.3) does not exclude PAD. For toe-brachial index (TBI), a threshold of <0.70 has a moderate ability to rule PAD in and out; however, this is based on limited evidence. Similarly, a small number of studies indicate that one or more monophasic Doppler waveforms in the pedal arteries is associated with the presence of PAD, whereas tri- or biphasic waveform suggests that PAD is less likely. Several forms of bedside testing may also be useful as adjunct tests and 7 studies were identified that investigated the reliability of bedside tests including ABI, toe pressure, TBI, transcutaneous oxygen pressure (TcPO2 ) and pulse palpation. Inter-rater reliability was poor for pulse palpation and moderate for TcPO2. The ABI, toe pressure and TBI may have good inter- and intra-rater reliability, but margins of error are wide, requiring a large change in the measurement for it to be considered a true change rather than error. There is currently no single bedside test or a combination of bedside tests that has been shown to have superior diagnostic accuracy for PAD in people with diabetes with or without DFU. However, an ABI <0.9 or >1.3, TBI of <0.70, and absent or monophasic pedal Doppler waveforms are useful to identify the presence of disease. The ability of the tests to exclude disease is variable and although reliability may be acceptable, evidence of error in the measurements means test results that are within normal limits should be considered with caution and in the context of other vascular assessment findings (e.g., pedal pulse palpation and clinical signs) and progress of DFU healing.

Performance of non-invasive bedside vascular testing in the prediction of wound healing or amputation among people with foot ulcers in diabetes: A systematic review.

INTRODUCTION: The presence of peripheral artery disease (PAD) confers a significantly increased risk of failure to heal and major lower limb amputation for people with diabetes-related foot ulcer (DFU). Determining performance of non-invasive bedside tests for predicting likely DFU outcomes is therefore key to effective risk stratification of patients with DFU and PAD to guide management decisions. The aim of this systematic review was to determine the performance of non-invasive bedside tests for PAD to predict DFU healing, healing post-minor amputation, or need for minor or major amputation in people with diabetes and DFU or gangrene. METHODS: A database search of Medline and Embase was conducted from 1980 to 30 November 2022. Prospective studies that evaluated non-invasive bedside tests in patients with diabetes, with and without PAD and foot ulceration or gangrene to predict the outcomes of DFU healing, minor amputation, and major amputation with or without revascularisation, were eligible. Included studies were required to have a minimum 6-month follow-up period and report adequate data to calculate the positive likelihood ratio (PLR) and negative likelihood ratio for the outcomes of DFU healing, and minor and major amputation. Methodological quality was assessed using the Quality in Prognosis Studies tool. RESULTS: From 14,820 abstracts screened 28 prognostic studies met the inclusion criteria. The prognostic tests evaluated by the studies included: ankle-brachial index (ABI) in 9 studies; ankle pressures in 10 studies, toe-brachial index in 4 studies, toe pressure in 9 studies, transcutaneous oxygen pressure (TcPO2 ) in 7 studies, skin perfusion pressure in 5 studies, continuous wave Doppler (pedal waveforms) in 2 studies, pedal pulses in 3 studies, and ankle peak systolic velocity in 1 study. Study quality was variable. Common reasons for studies having a moderate or high risk of bias were poorly described study participation, attrition rates, and inadequate adjustment for confounders. In people with DFU, toe pressure ≥30 mmHg, TcPO2 ≥25 mmHg, and skin perfusion pressure of ≥40 mmHg were associated with a moderate to large increase in pretest probability of healing in people with DFU. Toe pressure ≥30 mmHg was associated with a moderate increase in healing post-minor amputation. An ABI using a threshold of ≥0.9 did not increase the pretest probability of DFU healing, whereas an ABI <0.5 was associated with a moderate increase in pretest probability of non-healing. Few studies investigated amputation outcomes. An ABI <0.4 demonstrated the largest increase in pretest probability of a major amputation (PLR ≥10). CONCLUSIONS: Prognostic capacity of bedside testing for DFU healing and amputation is variable. A toe pressure ≥30 mmHg, TcPO2 ≥25 mmHg, and skin perfusion pressure of ≥40 mmHg are associated with a moderate to large increase in pretest probability of healing in people with DFU. There are little data available evaluating the prognostic capacity of bedside testing for healing after minor amputation or for major amputation in people with DFU. Current evidence suggests that an ABI <0.4 may be associated with a large increase in risk of major amputation. The findings of this systematic review need to be interpreted in the context of limitations of available evidence, including varying rates of revascularisation, lack of post-revascularisation bedside testing, and heterogenous subpopulations.

Standards for the development and methodology of the 2023 IWGDF guidelines.

AIMS: Diabetes-related foot disease is a major source of patient burden and societal costs. Investing in evidence-based international guidelines on diabetes-related foot disease is important to reduce this burden and costs, provided the guidelines are focused on outcomes important to key stakeholders and are evidence-based and properly implemented. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot (IWGDF) has published and updated international guidelines since 1999. The 2023 updates were made using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment Development and Evaluation evidence-to-decision framework. This concerns formulating relevant clinical questions and important outcomes, conducting systematic reviews of the literature and meta-analyses where appropriate, completing summary of judgement tables, and writing recommendations that are specific, unambiguous and actionable, along with their transparent rationale. RESULTS: We herein describe the development of the 2023 IWGDF Guidelines on the prevention and management of diabetes-related foot disease, which consists of seven chapters, each prepared by a separate working group of international experts. These chapters provide guidelines related to diabetes-related foot disease on prevention; classification of diabetes-related foot ulcer, offloading, peripheral artery disease, infection, wound healing interventions, and active Charcot neuro-osteoarthropathy. Based on these seven guidelines, the IWGDF Editorial Board also produced a set of practical guidelines. Each guideline underwent extensive review by the members of the IWGDF Editorial Board as well as independent international experts in each field. CONCLUSIONS: We believe that the adoption and implementation of the 2023 IWGDF guidelines by healthcare providers, public health agencies, and policymakers will improve the prevention and management of diabetes-related foot disease, and subsequently reduce the worldwide patient and societal burden caused by this disease.

Effectiveness of revascularisation for the ulcerated foot in patients with diabetes and peripheral artery disease: A systematic review.

INTRODUCTION: Peripheral artery disease (PAD) is associated with an increased likelihood of delayed or non-healing of a diabetes-related foot ulcer, gangrene, and amputation. The selection of the most effective surgical technique for revascularisation of the lower limb in this population is challenging and there is a lack of conclusive evidence to support the choice of intervention. This systematic review aimed to determine, in people with diabetes and tissue loss, if direct revascularisation is superior to indirect revascularisation and if endovascular revascularisation is superior to open revascularisation for the outcomes of wound healing, minor or major amputation, and adverse events including mortality. METHODS: Title and abstract searches of Medline, Embase, PubMed, and EBSCO were conducted from 1980 to 30th November 2022. Cohort and case-control studies and randomised controlled trials reporting comparative outcomes of direct (angiosome) revascularisation (DR) and indirect revascularisation (IR) or the comparative outcomes of endovascular revascularisation and open or hybrid revascularisation for the outcomes of healing, minor amputation, and major amputation in people with diabetes, PAD and tissue loss (including foot ulcer and/or gangrene) were eligible. Methodological quality was assessed using the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool for randomised trials, the ROBINS-I tool for non-randomised studies, and Newcastle-Ottawa Scale for observational and cohort studies where details regarding the allocation to intervention groups were not provided. RESULTS: From a total 7086 abstracts retrieved, 26 studies met the inclusion criteria for the comparison of direct angiosome revascularisation (DR) and indirect revascularisation (IR), and 11 studies met the inclusion criteria for the comparison of endovascular and open revascularisation. One study was included in both comparisons. Of the included studies, 35 were observational (31 retrospective and 4 prospective cohorts) and 1 was a randomised controlled trial. Cohort study quality was variable and generally low, with common sources of bias related to heterogeneous participant populations and interventions and lack of reporting of or adjusting for confounding factors. The randomised controlled trial had a low risk of bias. For studies of DR and IR, results were variable, and it is uncertain if one technique is superior to the other for healing, prevention of minor or major amputation, or mortality. However, the majority of studies reported that a greater proportion of participants receiving DR healed compared with IR, and that IR with collaterals may have similar outcomes to DR for wound healing. For patients with diabetes, infrainguinal PAD, and an adequate great saphenous vein available for use as a bypass conduit who were deemed suitable for either surgical procedure, an open revascularisation first approach was superior to endovascular therapy to prevent a major adverse limb event or death (Hazard Ratio: 0.72; 95% CI 0.61-0.86). For other studies of open and endovascular approaches, there was generally no difference in outcomes between the interventions. CONCLUSIONS: The majority of available evidence for the effectiveness of DR and IR and open and endovascular revascularisation for wound healing and prevention of minor and major amputation and adverse events including mortality in people with diabetes, PAD and tissue loss is inconclusive, and the certainty of evidence is very low. Data from one high quality randomised controlled trial supports the use of open over endovascular revascularisation to prevent a major limb event and death in people with diabetes, infrainguinal disease and tissue loss who have an adequate great saphenous vein available and who are deemed suitable for either approach.

The intersocietal IWGDF, ESVS, SVS guidelines on peripheral artery disease in people with diabetes and a foot ulcer.

Diabetes related foot complications have become a major cause of morbidity and are implicated in most major and minor amputations globally. Approximately 50% of people with diabetes and a foot ulcer have peripheral artery disease (PAD) and the presence of PAD significantly increases the risk of adverse limb and cardiovascular events. The International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot (IWGDF) has published evidence based guidelines on the management and prevention of diabetes related foot complications since 1999. This guideline is an update of the 2019 IWGDF guideline on the diagnosis, prognosis and management of peripheral artery disease in people with diabetes mellitus and a foot ulcer. For this guideline the IWGDF, the European Society for Vascular Surgery and the Society for Vascular Surgery decided to collaborate to develop a consistent suite of recommendations relevant to clinicians in all countries. This guideline is based on three new systematic reviews. Using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation framework clinically relevant questions were formulated, and the literature was systematically reviewed. After assessing the certainty of the evidence, recommendations were formulated which were weighed against the balance of benefits and harms, patient values, feasibility, acceptability, equity, resources required, and when available, costs. Through this process five recommendations were developed for diagnosing PAD in a person with diabetes, with and without a foot ulcer or gangrene. Five recommendations were developed for prognosis relating to estimating likelihood of healing and amputation outcomes in a person with diabetes and a foot ulcer or gangrene. Fifteen recommendations were developed related to PAD treatment encompassing prioritisation of people for revascularisation, the choice of a procedure and post-surgical care. In addition, the Writing Committee has highlighted key research questions where current evidence is lacking. The Writing Committee believes that following these recommendations will help healthcare professionals to provide better care and will reduce the burden of diabetes related foot complications.

Assessment and management of diabetes-related foot infection according to the new International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot guidelines 2023-Multidisciplinary grand rounds.

Diabetes-related foot disease is a serious and common complication for people with diabetes mellitus. The gold standard care for a person with diabetes-related foot disease is the involvement of a multidisciplinary foot team engaged in evidence-based care. To date, there are seven International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot (IWGDF) guidelines published to assist healthcare providers in managing diabetes-related foot disease around the world. This review discusses the acute management of diabetes-related foot infection with insights from experts of various specialities (internal medicine, infectious disease, vascular surgery, radiology) with a discussion on the implementation of IWGDF guidelines in real life practice and the challenges that healthcare providers may face.

The International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot: Stories and Numbers Behind Three Decades of Evidence-Based Guidelines for the Management of Diabetes-Related Foot Disease.

Foot disease is a devastating complication of diabetes. For almost 3 decades, the mission of the International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot (IWGDF) is to produce evidence-based guidelines to inform health care providers worldwide on strategies for the prevention and management of diabetes-related foot disease. In this publication, we aim to better inform the reader about 'the story behind' the IWGDF Guidelines and thus facilitate improved uptake of the recommendations described in the guidelines. The first IWGDF Guidelines were published in 1999, and these have been successfully updated every 4 years since. With each update, IWGDF has improved the methodological rigour and extended the topics covered. This has been possible thanks to the involvement of > 100 experts from > 60 countries, all voluntarily dedicating their time. We estimate that the 2023 update of the IWGDF Guidelines required a total 10 years of full-time work, which would have cost 2 million euros if the voluntary work had been financially compensated. The IWGDF Guidelines are not only published in English but also translated to support local implementation. Currently available translations serve 2.9 billion people globally in their native language. As an independent and multidisciplinary organisation, IWGDF hopes that the 2023 update will continue to stimulate clinicians from all different disciplines to deliver the best care possible for these patients, will motivate researchers to undertake the high-quality trials needed to deliver the new evidence to advance the field further, and collectively will support people with diabetes-related foot disease to minimize their disease burdens.

Australian evidence-based guidelines for the prevention and management of diabetes-related foot disease: a guideline summary.

INTRODUCTION: Diabetes-related foot disease (DFD) - foot ulcers, infection, ischaemia - is a leading cause of hospitalisation, disability, and health care costs in Australia. The previous 2011 Australian guideline for DFD was outdated. We developed new Australian evidence-based guidelines for DFD by systematically adapting suitable international guidelines to the Australian context using the ADAPTE and GRADE approaches recommended by the NHMRC. MAIN RECOMMENDATIONS: This article summarises the most relevant of the 98 recommendations made across six new guidelines for the general medical audience, including: prevention - screening, education, self-care, footwear, and treatments to prevent DFD; classification - classifications systems for ulcers, infection, ischaemia and auditing; peripheral artery disease (PAD) - examinations and imaging for diagnosis, severity classification, and treatments; infection - examinations, cultures, imaging and inflammatory markers for diagnosis, severity classification, and treatments; offloading - pressure offloading treatments for different ulcer types and locations; and wound healing - debridement, wound dressing selection principles and wound treatments for non-healing ulcers. CHANGES IN MANAGEMENT AS A RESULT OF THE GUIDELINE: For people without DFD, key changes include using a new risk stratification system for screening, categorising risk and managing people at increased risk of DFD. For those categorised at increased risk of DFD, more specific self-monitoring, footwear prescription, surgical treatments, and activity management practices to prevent DFD have been recommended. For people with DFD, key changes include using new ulcer, infection and PAD classification systems for assessing, documenting and communicating DFD severity. These systems also inform more specific PAD, infection, pressure offloading, and wound healing management recommendations to resolve DFD.

The Intersocietal IWGDF, ESVS, SVS Guidelines on Peripheral Artery Disease in People With Diabetes Mellitus and a Foot Ulcer.

Diabetes related foot complications have become a major cause of morbidity and are implicated in most major and minor amputations globally. Approximately 50% of people with diabetes and a foot ulcer have peripheral artery disease (PAD) and the presence of PAD significantly increases the risk of adverse limb and cardiovascular events. The International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot (IWGDF) has published evidence based guidelines on the management and prevention of diabetes related foot complications since 1999. This guideline is an update of the 2019 IWGDF guideline on the diagnosis, prognosis, and management of peripheral artery disease in people with diabetes mellitus and a foot ulcer. For this updated guideline, the IWGDF, the European Society for Vascular Surgery, and the Society for Vascular Surgery decided to collaborate to develop a consistent suite of recommendations relevant to clinicians in all countries. This guideline is based on three new systematic reviews. Using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation framework clinically relevant questions were formulated, and the literature was systematically reviewed. After assessing the certainty of the evidence, recommendations were formulated which were weighed against the balance of benefits and harms, patient values, feasibility, acceptability, equity, resources required, and when available, costs. Through this process five recommendations were developed for diagnosing PAD in a person with diabetes, with and without a foot ulcer or gangrene. Five recommendations were developed for prognosis relating to estimating likelihood of healing and amputation outcomes in a person with diabetes and a foot ulcer or gangrene. Fifteen recommendations were developed related to PAD treatment encompassing prioritisation of people for revascularisation, the choice of a procedure and post-surgical care. In addition, the Writing Committee has highlighted key research questions where current evidence is lacking. The Writing Committee believes that following these recommendations will help healthcare professionals to provide better care and will reduce the burden of diabetes related foot complications.

The intersocietal IWGDF, ESVS, SVS guidelines on peripheral artery disease in people with diabetes mellitus and a foot ulcer.

Diabetes related foot complications have become a major cause of morbidity and are implicated in most major and minor amputations globally. Approximately 50% of people with diabetes and a foot ulcer have peripheral artery disease (PAD) and the presence of PAD significantly increases the risk of adverse limb and cardiovascular events. The International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot (IWGDF) has published evidence based guidelines on the management and prevention of diabetes related foot complications since 1999. This guideline is an update of the 2019 IWGDF guideline on the diagnosis, prognosis, and management of peripheral artery disease in people with diabetes mellitus and a foot ulcer. For this updated guideline, the IWGDF, the European Society for Vascular Surgery, and the Society for Vascular Surgery decided to collaborate to develop a consistent suite of recommendations relevant to clinicians in all countries. This guideline is based on three new systematic reviews. Using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation framework clinically relevant questions were formulated, and the literature was systematically reviewed. After assessing the certainty of the evidence, recommendations were formulated which were weighed against the balance of benefits and harms, patient values, feasibility, acceptability, equity, resources required, and when available, costs. Through this process five recommendations were developed for diagnosing PAD in a person with diabetes, with and without a foot ulcer or gangrene. Five recommendations were developed for prognosis relating to estimating likelihood of healing and amputation outcomes in a person with diabetes and a foot ulcer or gangrene. Fifteen recommendations were developed related to PAD treatment encompassing prioritisation of people for revascularisation, the choice of a procedure and post-surgical care. In addition, the Writing Committee has highlighted key research questions where current evidence is lacking. The Writing Committee believes that following these recommendations will help healthcare professionals to provide better care and will reduce the burden of diabetes related foot complications.