Study of Cognitive Impairment between Diabetic Foot Patients

Background: Diabetic foot (DF) is one of the most widespread type 2 diabetes mellitus “T2DM” complications, it originates from the conjunction of neuropathy and vascular disease. Some reports suggest that amputees might be prone to cognitive decline. Aim of the work: To investigate the cognitive function of DF patients and the relations between it and diabetes complications& comorbidities. Patients and methods: One hundred dementia-free subjects with DF aged >18 were enrolled in the study through the period from March to August 2018 from the Vascular outpatient clinic of Qena University Hospital and only patients whom gave consent have joined the study. The mean age of the study group was 61 years, with 70 males and 30 females, their demographic characters were recorded and medical cognitive tests were applied. Patients have been undergone clinical vascular examination, data on diabetic complications and comorbidities were gathered; (HbA1c) tests were carried out for all patients. Results: The mean Mini-Mental State Examination “MMSE” score of subjects was 24.6 and 40% had global cognitive dysfunction (MMSE ≤ 24). Between elderly subjects (aged ≥ 65), MMSE impairment was linked to amputation, episodic memory impairment was connected to foot amputation and complications. Elderly subjects with HbA1c >7% had elevated odds of psychomotor slowness and abstract reasoning impairment. However, such findings were not present in adult subjects <65 years. Conclusion: Diabetic foot is the severest form of T2DM that causes significant impairment in all cognitive domains. The severity of depression is significantly increased with the intensity of amputation.