Monitoring and Prevention the Risk of Diabetic Foot Ulcer Infection during Coronavirus Disease-19 Pandemic: A Narrative Review and Perspective Algorithm

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The coronavirus disease (COVID)-19 pandemic leads to significant changes in the healthcare system and undermining best practices for maintaining a diabetic limb. A large number of patients with diabetic foot are left without timely medical care and are at increased risk of complications, hospitalization, lower limb amputation, and death. A new paradigm must be adopted for the transition from inpatient care to community-based care. The introduction of a pandemic remote management for patients with diabetic foot ulcer includes an assessment of the risk of complications through telemedicine and further stratification of patients according to the developed algorithm. METHODS: A literature review was performed for articles related to telemedicine. We used PubMed, Google Scholar, Cochrane Library, and Ovid MEDLINE to search published articles. We used the following keywords: “Telemedicine,” “diabetes mellitus,” “COVID-19,” “diabetic foot ulcer,” and “remote monitoring.” RESULTS: Implementation of the proposed pandemic care includes telemedicine for remote monitoring and treatment of patients with diabetic foot ulcers, as well as an algorithm for determining the risk of diabetic ulcer infection and patient management tactics according to the identified risk. CONCLUSION: The management of patients with diabetic foot ulcers during a pandemic includes the following goals – to reduce the burden on the health-care system, maintain the safety and functionality of diabetic foot at home, and reduce the risk of COVID-19 in patients with diabetic foot ulcers.