knowledge of risk factors for foot ulceration among patients with diabetes mellitus attending a tertiary health facility in nigeria

Objective: diabetic foot ulcer (dfu) is a relatively common complication of diabetes mellitus and constitutes a major cause of mortality. this study aimed to assess the knowledge of risk factors for foot ulceration among patients with diabetes in a tertiary health facility in south western nigeria. materials and methods: this cross-sectional study was initiated with participation of 100 diabetic patients. diabetic patients were attending the medical outpatient clinic of the university college hospital, ibadan. a structured and validated questionnaire was administered and data was analyzed using spss 22. association between sociodemographic characteristics and knowledge of risk factors for foot ulceration was evaluated by chi-square test. results: most of respondents were female (66%). the mean age of the patients was 58.77 (±11.8) years and 51% of patients did not know that it is possible to develop foot ulcer without feeling pain and 30% did not know that features suggestive of neuropathy could be associated with development of foot ulcer. 75% did not know that surgical vascular repair could play any role in the healing of a diabetic foot ulcer. 11% of patients were walking barefooted at home and as much as 63% of respondents did not know that poor longterm glycemic control could be a risk factor for the development of diabetic foot ulcers. conclusion: the knowledge of the patients attending the diabetes clinic of a tertiary hospital in south-western nigeria on foot care is generally poor. education in this direction is very paramount to correct this defect.