“The importance of seeing my podiatrist…
I have learned a valuable lesson over the last year. I have had peripheral neuropathy since my mid-50s and surprisingly I don’t even have diabetes. I have been seeing Dr. Stewart for several years for routine foot care to treat my toenails and calluses. I am now 84 years old and at the beginning of this year my left 3rd toe became very red and swollen on a Friday afternoon and I went to an urgent care facility as I was concerned with infection. I was started on antibiotics and instructed to see Dr. Stewart on Monday. I didn’t even think to call Dr. Stewart on Friday because I didn’t want to bother him over the weekend.
Well, by the time I walked into his office on Monday morning my 3rd toe was so red and swollen that Dr. Stewart immediately put me into the hospital and I ended having my toe amputated. I was surprised at how quickly the infection set in and how I never felt sick or had any pain as a result of my neuropathy. Thankfully I healed without any problems.
As a result of my experience, I learned the value of checking my feet routinely and seeing my podiatrist, Dr. Stewart on a regular basis.
More recently, the day before one of my routine checkups, I noticed a callus at the tip of my 2nd left toe. When I saw Dr. Stewart the next day, he removed the callus and informed me that I had a wound extending all the way down to my bone. Fortunately, he aggressively treated me by putting me in a special shoe to take pressure off of my toe and he started wound care on me. I carefully followed all of his directions and within three weeks my deep wound healed and my toe was saved.
I cannot stress how important it is for patients like me with peripheral neuropathy to see their foot doctor on a regular basis to prevent amputation. I am sure that if I did not see Dr. Stewart on a routine basis that I would probably have lost another toe or even my foot and leg.“
* Results may vary from person to person