Diabetic foot: warning signs, foot care, treatment and which doctor to see
How diabetes damages the feet, the warning signs of a foot ulcer or infection, daily foot care, treatment options and when to get help at once.
What diabetic foot problems are
Diabetes can damage the feet in two main ways. High blood sugar over years injures the nerves (peripheral neuropathy), so cuts, blisters, burns and pressure go unnoticed. It also narrows the arteries to the legs (peripheral arterial disease), so wounds receive less blood and heal slowly. Together they allow a small injury to become an ulcer, an ulcer to become infected, and an infection to spread to bone.
Diabetic foot problems are a leading cause of hospital admission and amputation in people with diabetes. Most of this is preventable through daily foot care, regular foot checks and getting help early when something goes wrong.
Warning signs
Watch for these and show them to your doctor:
- Numbness, or feeling as if you are wearing socks when you are not
- Tingling, pins and needles or burning pain, often worse at night
- A foot ulcer — an open sore, often on the sole or toes, that may be painless
- Calluses, especially with dark blood underneath, and corns
- Swelling, warmth or redness of the foot
- A change in foot shape, or a hot, swollen foot without an obvious injury (possible Charcot foot)
- Cold, pale or bluish feet, pain in the calves on walking, or toes turning dark
- Cracked heels, fungal infection between the toes, or ingrown nails
Because nerve damage removes pain, a serious problem can feel minor. Look at your feet rather than relying on how they feel.
Who is at higher risk in India
The risk is highest in people who have had diabetes for many years, have poor sugar control, already have numbness or poor circulation, have had an ulcer before, smoke, or have kidney disease or poor eyesight that makes feet hard to check. Some everyday habits in India add to the risk:
- Walking barefoot at home, at places of worship, on hot surfaces or outdoors
- Ill-fitting chappals or shoes, and slippers that give no protection
- Burns from hot-water fomentation, hot bricks, heaters or hot sand on numb feet
- Cutting corns with blades, or using corn caps and acid plasters
- Applying home remedies or powders to wounds, and delaying a doctor's visit
How it is diagnosed
Every person with diabetes should have their feet examined at least once a year. Checks include:
- Looking at the skin, nails, shape and footwear
- Monofilament test — a fine nylon thread pressed on the sole to test sensation, often with a tuning fork test for vibration
- Feeling the foot pulses, and an ankle-brachial index comparing blood pressure in the ankle and arm
- Doppler ultrasound of the leg arteries when circulation is reduced, sometimes followed by an angiogram
If there is an ulcer, the doctor will measure it, check whether it reaches bone and take a sample for culture if it looks infected. A foot X-ray looks for bone infection or Charcot changes, and an MRI gives more detail when bone infection (osteomyelitis) is suspected. Blood tests check sugar, kidney function and markers of infection.
Which doctor to see
Your diabetologist or physician should check your feet regularly and coordinate care. Many diabetes centres run foot clinics with podiatrists and wound-care nurses. A general surgeon treats infections and removes dead tissue, a vascular surgeon or interventional radiologist restores blood flow, and a plastic surgeon helps close large wounds.
You can find diabetologists in Bengaluru or general surgeons in Bengaluru on The Doctor Index, each with a registration you can check.
Treatment
A diabetic foot ulcer needs prompt, organised care. The main elements are:
- Offloading — taking pressure off the ulcer with a special cast, boot, footwear or rest. Walking on an ulcer is one of the main reasons it does not heal.
- Debridement — regular removal of dead tissue and callus by a trained professional, and appropriate dressings.
- Antibiotics — for infected wounds, chosen according to severity and culture results, sometimes through a drip in hospital. They are not needed for clean, uninfected ulcers.
- Revascularisation — angioplasty or bypass surgery to improve blood flow when the arteries are narrowed.
- Surgery to drain abscesses or remove infected bone, and in severe cases amputation of part of the foot to save the rest of the leg or the person's life.
- Better blood sugar control, which helps wounds heal and infection clear.
Do not treat a foot wound yourself with ointments, home remedies or leftover antibiotics, and do not stop your diabetes medicines on your own. Ask about the plan if amputation is mentioned; early specialist care often allows a smaller operation or none at all.
Living with it: daily foot care
- Look at both feet every day, including the soles and between the toes — use a mirror or ask a family member
- Wash daily in lukewarm water, checking the temperature with your elbow, and dry well between the toes
- Moisturise dry skin, but not between the toes
- Cut nails straight across, or have them cut by a professional if your eyesight or sensation is poor
- Wear well-fitting, closed footwear with cushioned soles, indoors and outdoors, and check inside shoes before putting them on
- Never walk barefoot, and keep feet away from heaters and hot surfaces
- Stop smoking, and keep blood sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol in range
When it is an emergency
Call 112 or 108, or go to the nearest emergency department, if a foot wound comes with:
- Fever, chills, vomiting or feeling very unwell
- Redness or swelling spreading up the foot or leg
- Pus, a foul smell, or skin or toes turning black
- A sudden cold, pale, painful foot
See your doctor within a day for any new ulcer, blister, cut that is not healing, or a hot, swollen foot, even if it is not painful.
Questions to ask at your appointment
- Do I have nerve damage or poor circulation in my feet?
- What is my risk of a foot ulcer, and how often should my feet be checked?
- What footwear should I wear?
- How should I care for this wound, and who will dress it?
- Is the wound infected, and does it reach the bone?
- Do I need a test or procedure to improve blood flow?
Common questions
Questions people ask
- Why doesn't my foot ulcer hurt?
- Diabetes can damage the nerves in the feet, so pain signals are weak or absent. A painless ulcer can still be serious and can become badly infected. That is why daily inspection, rather than waiting for pain, is so important.
- Can a diabetic foot ulcer heal?
- Yes, most ulcers heal with offloading, regular wound care, treatment of infection, good sugar control and, where needed, improved blood flow. Healing can take weeks to months, and ulcers can recur, so preventive foot care must continue afterwards.
- Is it safe to soak my feet in hot water?
- Soaking is best avoided, and hot water can burn numb feet without you noticing. Wash your feet in lukewarm water, test the temperature with your elbow or a thermometer, and dry them thoroughly, especially between the toes.
- What kind of footwear should I buy?
- Choose closed shoes or sandals with a back strap that fit well, with room for the toes and a cushioned sole. People with nerve damage or foot deformities may need custom footwear or insoles; ask your doctor or a podiatrist.
This condition is usually assessed by a diabetologist. Every profile shows the doctor’s registration and what has been checked.
Diabetologists in Bangalore
A few diabetologists listed on The Doctor Index. They are shown because of their speciality, not a stated interest in Diabetic Foot; ask the clinic whether the doctor sees it.
Related conditions
- Diabetes Type 1
- Diabetes Type 2
- Diabetic Eye Problems
- Diabetic Heart Disease
- Diabetic Kidney Problems
- Diabetic Nerve Problems
- Hyperglycemia
- Hypoglycemia
Practical reading
All postsSources
- MedlinePlus, US National Library of Medicine — Diabetic Foot
- International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot (IWGDF) — Guidelines
- World Health Organization — Diabetes fact sheet
- MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine — Diabetic Foot — Public-domain health-topic summary
Diabetic foot: warning signs, foot care, treatment and which doctor to see is original text by The Doctor Index; the compiled source draft was used for research. Source: MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine. Orphadata Science: Free access data from Orphanet. © INSERM 1999; July 2026 data, CC BY 4.0. This product uses the Human Phenotype Ontology (hp/releases/2026-09-01). Only sources listed for this article apply. Source material has been selected and arranged; HPO definitions are reproduced without alteration. No source organisation endorses this compilation. Köhler S et al. The Human Phenotype Ontology project: linking molecular biology and disease through phenotype data. Nucleic Acids Research 2014;42(D1):D966–D974. doi:10.1093/nar/gkt1026.
General information, not advice about your situation. Errors can be reported through the corrections process. Reference TDI-C-0736.