- Hi, I'm Doctor Sari Priesand
and I'm part of the Michigan Medicine Podiatry team.
- Hi, I'm Doctor Crystal Holmes
also a member of the Michigan Medicine Podiatry team.
- In this video, we're gonna talk about
how to screen your feet, twice daily,
as well as what to look for if you have to call
for an appointment.
- One of the first parts of your self-examination
is a visual inspection.
And this is really critical because
it's the first step to identifying a potential problem.
You can do this by using a long arm mirror
or by using a door length mirror.
If you're fortunate enough and you're flexible,
you can also just bring your feet up closer to you
and look that way.
You can always employ the help
of a friend or a family member,
but it's important that you check
both the sides, the bottoms, the tops of the feet,
as well as your lower legs.
- Specifically, things that you can look for
would be any sort of toenail issues,
any sort of ingrowing nails or loosening of your nails,
or any pain in your feet.
In terms of your skin, checking for any rubbing
from your shoe gear, any dry skin.
Anything that looks different or out of the ordinary
should be evaluated or anything of concern
that can potentially be open to infection
and potentially cause ulceration.
- I think it's key to note that if you see something
that's new or out of the ordinary,
those are all signs that you should seek medical attention.
- Another thing to check for at home
is if you have any boney prominences or foot deformities.
This can include hammertoes or bunion deformity
or potentially prominences on
the bottom of your foot or the sides of your feet.
Anything like that should also be evaluated
as they can predispose you to ulcerations or problems.
- Evaluation of your shoe wear and socks
are also critical when doing your self-examination.
You want to check and make sure that your shoes aren't worn,
don't have any holes in them
and that there's no debris inside.
And you should check this several times a day.
Also, if you have pets in your home,
it's very frequent for dogs and cats
to bring debris into the house
and to leave them in small dark places such as our shoes.
The other thing that you want to do
is look for wear patterns in your shoes.
So, if your shoes have holes in them
or if there's changes in the way
that you're wearing your shoes,
these are things you want to bring into the office
so that we can help you evaluate them.
- We also recommend a slow break-in period for new shoes.
So that means not wearing a new pair of shoes
constantly throughout the day,
but slowly breaking it in so that way you can check
for any sort of irritation or rubbing.
In addition, checking your feet
in the morning and at night can be helpful
to make sure that there are no new issues
that come up throughout the day.
- If you have a pair of new socks,
this is also a critical component to making sure
that you have good foot health.
So, we advise patients to make sure
that they have socks that are
made out of a microfiber that's breathable
and we also suggest that you check the inside of the socks,
daily, to make sure that, again,
that there's no debris inside of it as well.
- [Dr. Sari] It's important to realize that you should
be checking your feet multiple times per day.
This is because as you're active
and on your feet throughout the day,
your feet may change or there might
be new issues that are developing.
- Always have your physician's number handy.
If you have a critical issue and you're concerned,
you don't want to be looking and searching
for your medical provider's information.
So, always have it posted in a very clear marked place
so you can find it in the case of an emergent situation.
- Some of the things that we see here in our clinic
are patients that have things like neuropathy,
if they have history of trauma,
any sort of deformity, all of that should be evaluated.
- Many persons that have diabetes,
might experience neuropathy symptoms.
This can include burning, numbness, tingling.
Sometimes you can even experience sharp shooting pains.
This may be something that you're dealing with
on a regular basis, but if you have a change
in those symptoms, this is something
that should be evaluated.
- And if you have neuropathy, you may not be sensing
if there's anything happening at the bottom of your foot.
You may not be able to feel it well.
So that means that you may be able to step on something
and not actually know it.
So that's why it emphasizes the importance
of checking your feet twice a day.
- If you experience signs of infection,
locally, such as a warm, red, hot swollen foot.
If there's drainage or change in drainage
if you've already had a wound,
then those are also acute issues
that you want to have evaluated.
If you begin to experience systemic infection signs,
such as nausea, vomiting, fever, chills or diarrhea,
these are all urgent signs of infection
warrant immediate medical attention
and you should contact your provider
or go to your nearest emergency room.
If you have a callus that has dried blood underneath it
or a dark red or brown discoloration,
this may not be a normal callus,
but what is called a pre-ulcerative callus.
And it is the first step to developing
a diabetic foot ulceration.
These calluses can be treated
and we can prevent the development of a full ulceration,
but it does require intervention.
- Also, we evaluate peripheral arterial disease
symptoms and screenings.
If you are a current smoker or prior smoker
or if you have evidence of secondhand smoke,
or if you even have pain or cramping when you walk,
these can be signs and symptoms
of peripheral artery disease.
You might also notice that you may be
developing signs of bluish discoloration
or signs of gangrene potentially in your foot,
which really should be evaluated as soon as possible.
- The American Diabetes Association
recommends that all persons with diabetes
have an annual foot exam.
This exam is critical to ensure your foot health.
If you have complications associated with diabetes,
such as neuropathy, peripheral arterial disease,
a history of ulcerations or amputations,
you may require more frequent visits
in order to maintain your foot health.
- Thanks for watching this video
and we hope you learned how
to screen your foot for foot problems
as well as when to call your physician
if you have any questions or concerns.