One of the most dangerous complications of diabetes is a foot ulcer that won’t heal, but now a preliminary study finds that a type of stem cell found in body fat may be a powerful remedy for these severe foot wounds. Diabetes Can Lead to Amputations, But Stem Cell Treatment Offers Hope!
The study included 63 patients with non-healing diabetic foot ulcers who were given injections of cells from their own body fat. Over the next year, the treatment healed the ulcers in most patients. Researchers said the study — conducted in Nicaragua — lays the groundwork for a similar trial in the United States, to replicate the findings.
Diabetic foot ulcers are open sores or wounds that affect roughly 15% of people with diabetes, according to the American Podiatric Medical Association (APMA). For some, the wounds refuse to heal and can become infected — sometimes leading to amputation.
In the United States alone, studies show that more than half of all amputations are diabetes-related — and non-healing foot ulcers are usually the reason why. People with diabetes are vulnerable to foot ulcers for several reasons, explained study author Dr. Michael Carstens.
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