What Researchers Did
This review article explored different medical, surgical, and alternative treatments for bone infections (osteomyelitis) in diabetic patients.
What They Found
Diabetic foot and wound infections often involve three to six different organisms, making antibiotic treatment challenging. While a 6-week course of intravenous antibiotics is sometimes used for osteomyelitis, it is often not curative, and surgical intervention can significantly shorten antibiotic therapy. For patients unable to undergo surgery, long-term antibiotics combined with local treatments may be used for suppressive therapy.
What This Means for Canadian Patients
Canadian patients with diabetic foot infections and osteomyelitis may benefit from a comprehensive treatment plan that combines medical and surgical approaches. This review suggests that while antibiotics are crucial, surgery can often improve outcomes and reduce the need for long-term antibiotic use. For those who cannot undergo surgery, long-term antibiotic management remains an option to control the infection.
Canadian Relevance
This study is not Canadian. While hyperbaric oxygenation is listed as a MeSH term for this review, the abstract itself does not detail HBOT protocols. However, the study focuses on osteomyelitis in diabetic patients, a common and severe complication of diabetic foot ulcers, which is a Health Canada-recognized indication for HBOT.
Study Limitations
As a review article published in 2001, this study reflects the understanding and available treatments for diabetic osteomyelitis from that period, without presenting new patient data.