Evidence map›Paper›PMID 25473322›Full record

ArticleRisk management and healthcare policy2014

Adverse events in diabetic foot infections: a case control study comparing early versus delayed medical treatment after home remedies.

Shamir O Cawich, Patrick Harnarayan, Shariful Islam, Steve Budhooram, Shivaa Ramsewak, Vijay Naraynsingh

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Risk management and healthcare policy, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
0.4field-weighted citation impact, top 35% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 10 citations in OpenAlex.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Shamir O CawichDepartment of Clinical Surgical Sciences, University of the West Indies, St Augustine Campus, Trinidad and Tobago, West Indies.
Patrick HarnarayanDepartment of Clinical Surgical Sciences, University of the West Indies, St Augustine Campus, Trinidad and Tobago, West Indies.
Shariful IslamDepartment of Clinical Surgical Sciences, University of the West Indies, St Augustine Campus, Trinidad and Tobago, West Indies.
Steve BudhooramDepartment of Clinical Surgical Sciences, University of the West Indies, St Augustine Campus, Trinidad and Tobago, West Indies.
Shivaa RamsewakDepartment of Clinical Surgical Sciences, University of the West Indies, St Augustine Campus, Trinidad and Tobago, West Indies.
Vijay NaraynsinghDepartment of Clinical Surgical Sciences, University of the West Indies, St Augustine Campus, Trinidad and Tobago, West Indies.
University of the West Indies · TT

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThe aim of conventional medical therapy in diabetic foot infections is to control infection, thereby reducing amputation rates, infectious morbidity, and death. Any delay incurred during a trial of home remedies could allow an infection to progress unchecked, increasing the risk of these adverse outcomes. This study sought to determine the effects of delayed operative interventions and amputations in these patients.

methodsA questionnaire study targeting all consecutive patients admitted with diabetic foot infection was carried out over 1 year. Two groups were defined, ie, a medical therapy group comprising patients who sought medical attention after detecting their infection and a home remedy group comprising those who voluntarily chose to delay medical therapy in favor of home remedies. The patients were followed throughout their hospital admissions. We recorded the duration of hospitalization and number of operative debridements and amputations performed.

resultsThere were 695 patients with diabetic foot infections, comprising 382 in the medical therapy group and 313 in the home remedy group. Many were previously hospitalized for foot infections in the medical therapy (78%) and home remedy (74.8%) groups. The trial of home remedies lasted for a mean duration of 8.9 days. The home remedy group had a longer duration of hospitalization (16.3 versus 8.5 days; P<0.001), more operative debridements (99.7% versus 94.5%; P<0.001), and more debridements per patient (2.85 versus 2.45; P<0.001). Additionally, in the home remedy group, there was an estimated increase in expenditure of US $10,821.72 US per patient and a trend toward more major amputations (9.3% versus 5.2%; P=0.073).

conclusionThere are negative outcomes when patients delay conventional medical therapy in favour of home remedies to treat diabetic foot infections. These treatments need not be mutually exclusive. We encourage persons with diabetes who wish to try home remedies to seek medical advice in addition as a part of holistic care.

Indexed as

adverse eventsdiabetic foot infectionshome remediesmedical treatment

Identifiers

PMID25473322
PMCPMC4251569
OpenAlexW1981881240

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.