Amputations are on the rise in the United States—160,000 people with diabetes undergo amputation each year. And 80% of non-traumatic lower limb amputations happen due to diabetes complications. An individual who has had an amputation has a worse chance of five-year survival than someone with coronary artery disease, breast cancer, and colorectal cancer.
Amputations in the United States are also substantially more prevalent among people of color. Quite simply, whether or not you have a limb amputated can come down to the color of your skin, how much money you make, and where you live.
Learn more about the Clinical Advisory Working Group.
Our mission is to reduce diabetes-related amputations.
Learn more about the Amputation Prevention Alliance Policy principles.
We are working together to eradicate unnecessary amputations.
Get Involved with the Amputation Prevention Alliance.
Support the Amputation Reduction and Compassion (ARC) Act by sending your representative a letter to cosponsor this legislation and help people living with diabetes get access to the care they need to prevent an amputation.
The Amputation Prevention Alliance is focused on saving limbs and lives, including among communities facing disproportionately high rates of amputations and amputated-related mortality. This work will include advancing needed policy changes, driving clinician awareness of opportunities to prevent amputations, and empowering patients to advocate for their best care. To address this crisis, the American Diabetes Association (ADA) has established the Amputation Prevention Alliance in partnership with innovators, clinical experts, leading health foundations, leaders in the diabetes community, policymakers, and provider groups. Our mission is to disrupt the curve of amputations among low-income and minority individuals with diabetes.
Over 70+ representatives from key patient and healthcare provider organizations gathered together to have critical conversations about how to prevent amputations in people living with diabetes. Read the summit recap (PDF).
People with diabetes can develop many different foot problems. Even ordinary problems can get worse and lead to serious complications. People with diabetes are far more likely to have a foot or leg amputated than people without diabetes. Foot problems most often happen when there is nerve damage, also called neuropathy. This can cause tingling, pain (burning or stinging), or weakness in the foot. It can also cause loss of feeling in the foot, so you can injure it and not know it. Poor blood flow or changes in the shape of your feet or toes may also cause problems. Many people with diabetes have peripheral artery disease (PAD) (which reduces blood flow to the feet) and neuropathy. Together, these problems make it easy to get ulcers and infections that may lead to amputation.
Most amputations are preventable by checking your feet daily, going to regular visits with your doctor, and wearing proper footwear.
The connection between diabetes and your feet is important because diabetes can cause nerve damage and reduced circulation, ultimately leading to limb loss and other complications. The good news is, you can lower your chances of complications by managing your blood glucose (blood sugar) levels and taking care of your feet.
For these reasons, take good care of your feet and see your doctor right away if you see any signs of foot problems. Ask about prescription shoes that are covered by Medicare and other insurance. Always follow your doctor’s advice when caring for ulcers or other foot problems.
Below is a list of abbreviations used in the compendia:
Information from experts and those dealing with amputation.
AOTI’s unique, multi-modality topical wound oxygen (TWO2) therapy has been proven in both random controlled trial and in real world evidence studies1 to provide more sustained healing for diabetic foot ulcers, resulting in a six-time lower recurrence rate vs standard of care alone and 71% reduction in amputations over 12 months. TWO2 therapy can be administered by the patient at home, improving access to care and enhancing treatment compliance.
1A Multinational, Multicenter, Randomized, Double-Blinded, Placebo-Controlled Trial to Evaluate the Efficacy of Cyclical Topical Wound Oxygen (TWO2) Therapy in the Treatment of Chronic Diabetic Foot Ulcers; Robert G. Frykberg, Peter J. Franks, et al. The TWO2 Study; Diabetes Care 2020;43:616-624, https://doi.org/10.2337/dc19-0476.
Issues surrounding equitable access to high-quality, preventive care in America are pervasive. At Podimetrics, we’re working tirelessly to address this fact for patients living with complex diabetes. It’s our belief that many of the access problems we’re seeing today for patients can be improved through three specific changes: 1) Broader expansion of patient care into the home, 2) Increased utilization of easy-to-use technology in the home that can help identify health care issues before they’re full blown costly health ailments, and 3) High-touch care that is focused on building a trusted relationship between a patient and their care team.
With your support, the American Diabetes Association® can continue our lifesaving work to make breakthroughs in research and provide people with the resources they need to fight diabetes.
