I think DH is going to lose a toe or even part of his foot. Any advice please

[shoeshinegirl]

DH is diabetic. On Sunday 12th all his foot was swollen and very red. We went to a&e and a small puncture wound was found under his foot,he was given antibiotics. At follow up appointment at foot clinic the following Wednesday it looked worse. They asked him to return the next day. Again it was worse, the nurse asked if he should be admitted but the doctor decided to change the antibiotics. This evening the dressing came off and I was shocked at how it looked. It's a lot worse. DH has another appointment tomorrow and I'm dreading what will happen.
Anyone been through this kind of thing?

I hope it's a good outcome for his foot op, well done on getting him up there so quickly

Well done for getting DH to hospital - wishing you both all the best

Hope your dh is getting the right treatment.

Hope he's being looked after well and it's been caught in time

Thank you all for your kind words. Sorry it's taken so long to reply.
DH was admitted about 4am. He is on IV antibiotics but think he will lose his toe. It looks like the infection has already damaged the ligaments of the toe. So they have said if that is the case they will have to remove it.
Just trying to sort DC and i'll head back up the hospital. DS has a school trip tomorrow and needs wellies. I forgot so have to sort that first.
Thank you all again

Sorry to hear that shoeshine It may seem like a huge thing but actually it's more straightforward than it sounds. You'll be amazed how quickly he'll recover from it.

shoeshine sorry to hear that, glad you got him seen before the scheduled appointment

Sorry, late to this. Same thing happened to my dad about 15 years ago. He was undiagnosed diabetic at that stage. Cut his toe, it went red then black and yucky. Dr gave him antibiotics and sent him home at which point it got worse and worse and he was very ill indeed. He ended up in hospital on IV antibiotics but they couldn't save the toe. He was lucky he didn't lose his foot.

Losing the toe is obviously not what you want to happen and it seems huge at the time but it's really really not a big deal. Further down the line as we are we barely remember it, it's more a source of amusement now, like when he was sent flip flops by mistake from M&S... And actually his toes have sort of moved across and closed the gap (it was the toe next to the big toe he lost) so it's barely noticeable.

I sound like I'm making light of it but it's only to show that, scary and awful as it is at this moment, which I totally understand, it really isn't the end of the world. It was a wake up call to my dad and he's had no foot problems since. Wishing you both lots of luck

Sorry to hear that op, but glad it hasn't spread to the rest of his foot. Hope the a.b's kick in soon!

Thank goodness you got him to A+E so quickly!

Thank you all again
DH is doing ok. I took him some food because the hospital food isn't very nice. He's a bit fed up but knows he's in the best place.
It's the middle toe. They said if DH does lose the toe, they will have to cut a wedge out of his foot too. And because he is at risk of infection and slow healing it's not ideal. But like you have said it's only a toe luckily. Trying not to get ahead but I'm worried about how it will affect his mobility. He isn't very steady on his feet because he has neuropathy anyway.
Going to grab something to eat before I forget.

Thinking of you both OP. It may take time but I'm sure he will learn to work with his potential mobility issue if he does to begin with.

I know the circumstances are very different but my daughter lost the front half of her right foot including the ball of her foot, when she was 19 months old (septicaemia). We wondered how she would ever manage with what she had left and she had not long been walking before it happened. Being young though she was able to get up and just get on with it and unlike your husband she didn't have the emotional aspect to deal with. She is 7 now and people who don't know her have no idea there is any problem with her foot when they see her running, jumping, climbing, riding a bike and generally being a normal kid. The biggest issue we have currently is getting shoes that will do up over her remaining foot and stay on (with an orthotic inside). She won't be a high heels kind of a girl sadly and will likely have to always wear ankle boot style shoes. She is single mindedly determined that this is normal, she will just do everything any other 7 year old would do regardless.

No doubt there will be some difficult stages for your husband with this especially if he does lose the toe, but have faith that he can regain the same level of mobility back with time and some support from the right people.

OP - I was a therapist on a vascular ward for years. IME, vascular surgeons are far too conservative about amputations. They see limb loss as personal failures on their part, which drove those of us who watched patients live with the long-term consequences mad. Those patients that have infected diabetic extremities removed sooner rather than later recover quicker, spend less time on antibiotics, have better quality of life, as they're not systemically weakened by continuous ongoing infection, and have better mobility as they can get on with re-learning how to walk using a healthy residual limb rather than hobbling around for months on a diseased complete one to keep a surgeon's pride intact.

Honestly - amputation is really not the end of the world, if it comes to that, but it is a scary time. for you.

beautifulgirls thank you for sharing your DD's story. I hope she achieves everything she wants in life,which I'm sure she will because she has you.
Children never fail to amaze me how they manage with what life throws at them.
Elphaba to be honest I wish they would just amputate, and get it over with. The infection is in his bone and has destroyed the ligaments. When we asked to nurse what would happen next, she said even if they can clear the infection, it will most likely keep coming back. DH isn't in the best of health anyway, so i can't see how putting it off is going to help.
Thank you all again

Wishing your dh better op

How is he now shoeshinegirl?