Charcot foot is a medical condition which occurs in patients having significant nerve damage (neuropathy). This nerve damage limits the ability of the patient to feel pain when foot is injured due to bumping or overdoing an exercise program. As a result of inability to feel the pain, the patient continues to use the injured foot, not giving it the time to heal. This results in weakening and eventual fracture of bones in the foot, leading to joint collapse and deformity. The charcot foot assumes a rocker-bottom appearance, making it very difficult for patient to walk. As the disease progresses, it can result in developing pressure sores, infection of bone and eventual amputation.

The risk of Charcot foot increases in patient to a great extent when patient suffers from diabetic neuropathy and is obese. The excessive weight of obese patients puts tremendous pressure on the foot bones which are already weakened by diabetic neuropathy. Patients with nerve damage who are also affected with tight Achilles tendon are also at a high risk to develop Charcot foot.

Previously the surgeons were treating the Charcot patients by immobilizing them for 9 months in wheel chair and by fitting them with a cast, leg brace or sometimes by surgically fixing internal plates and screws to hold the bones in place. However success rate of such treatments were lower, especially in obese patients with diabetic neuropathy.

According to new research published in the journal Foot & Ankle International by Dr. Pinzur, professor in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Rehabilitation at Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine, a new medical device is now available to treat Charcot foot disease in obese diabetic patients with 92% success rate. This new medical device is called a circular external fixator. It comprises of rigid frame with three rings made of stainless steel and aluminum. The stainless-steel pins of the rings fix the bones in place after surgery.

The good news is that this new surgical technique using circular external fixator only partially immobilizes the patient, that too, only for two or three months. The patient is able to walk immediately after surgery, by using crutches.

Source: Journal Foot & Ankle International