Show Notes
A hot, swollen foot that does not hurt. A normal X-ray. A diagnosis missed for weeks. This episode is about the diabetic foot complication that is very treatable when caught early, and devastating when it is not: Charcot neuro-osteoarthropathy.
We break down the four things that decide whether a patient keeps their foot or loses it. First, why a hot, swollen, neuropathic foot should be treated as Charcot until proven otherwise. Second, why an MRI sees what a plain X-ray cannot, and how to tell Charcot apart from a bone infection. Third, why the total contact cast is still the cornerstone of treatment, and why even standing on the foot too much can undo it. Fourth, how the way a service is built, rapid access and same-day referral, often matters more than any single clinician’s knowledge.
Whether you are a clinician who sees feet, or someone living with diabetes and reduced sensation, the message is the same and worth remembering: if one foot suddenly becomes hot, swollen or a different shape, get it seen the same day and keep the weight off it.
Clear, practical, and grounded in the current evidence, including the 2023 international guidelines.
Please note: this episode uses an AI-generated voice. The clinical content is researched and reviewed by Rob Menzies.
More from The Foot in Diabetes
The patient passes the foot exam, then tells you their toes burn at night. We read a new American Limb Preservation Society paper on putting the neuropathy guidelines into practice alongside the review it cites eight times, and ask why it never mentions corneal confocal microscopy, the tool that review calls "the most pertinent modality for early detection".
This episode explores peripheral arterial disease as a spectrum of nine distinct phenotypes, each shaped by different underlying comorbidities, anatomical patterns, and management priorities. Rather than treating PAD as one uniform diagnosis, the discussion shows how diabetic PAD, renal PAD, hypertensive PAD, dyslipidaemic PAD, smoker-related disease, polyvascular PAD, inflammatory or autoimmune PAD, hypercoagulable PAD, and structural or mechanical PAD each present differently and demand different diagnostic and referral strategies. The episode also connects these phenotypes to the realities of diabetic foot care, including neuropathy masking ischemic pain, delayed wound healing, ulcer progression, infection risk, amputation prevention, and the need for coordinated multidisciplinary limb-salvage pathways. It is aimed at clinicians and MDT members who assess lower-limb risk and want a more precise, phenotype-driven way to think about ischemia
The Foot in Diabetes — Episode 2: Peripheral Arterial Disease and Limb Ischaemia in Diabetes
You’ll hear why the “renal foot” is more than just “diabetic foot plus CKD”: uraemia, mineral–bone disorder, medial arterial calcification, PAD, diabetes, and dialysis‑related haemodynamic swings combine to create a uniquely fragile limb. The hosts unpack what this means at the bedside—late‑presenting ulcers, explosive infection, osteomyelitis, complex tissue loss—and why calciphylaxis sits in its own lethal category. Expect clear explanations of why ankle–brachial index can mislead in ESRD, how dialysis modality might influence limb risk, and what the evidence really shows about revascularisation versus primary amputation in this group. The discussion keeps circling back to MDT pathways and realistic goals of care, so you can translate concepts into decisions on ward rounds and in dialysis units. If you work in nephrology, vascular surgery, diabetes, podiatry, or a high‑risk foot service—and you want a sharper mental model for recognising and managing the renal foot—this episode is built for you.