The effectiveness of laser therapy in patients with diabetic foot

Abstract

Purpose: to compare the effectiveness of laser therapy and traditional methods for managing diabetic patients with purulent-necrotic lesions in their lower extremities.Material and methods. The article presents a retrospective analysis of outcomes after treatment of 76 patients with diabetes mellitus having purulent-necrotic lesions in their lower extremities. Patients were divided into two groups. The first (main) group consisted of 34 patients in whom traditional treatment was accompanied by intravenous laser blood irradiation and local laser therapy; the second (control) group consisted of 42 patients who received only traditional treatment.Results. Laser therapy contributed to more rapid reduction of wound defect (17.4 %) compared to patients after traditional treatment (11.1 %); it reduced the period of transition to inflammatory-regenerative changes, promoted a smaller number of high amputations of lower limbs from 14 to 6 % as well as shortened the length of hospital stay by 11.2 days.Conclusion. Laser light therapy in patients with diabetic foot accelerates cleansing and reduction of the wound area, allows to reduce or eliminate inflammatory process in shorter time than with traditional treatment.