MICROORGANISMS ASSOCIATED WITH DIABETIC FOOT ULCERS

Background: Non-traumatic lower limb amputation is the most common devastating complication of diabetes, primarily due to diabetic foot ulcers (DFU) and diabetic foot infections (DFI). DFIs are predominantly polymicrobial and multidrug-resistant (MDR) and results in treatment failure. Aims: The main objectives of the study are to identify the microorganisms associated with diabetic foot ulers. Methods: This was a prospective study at a tertiary care hospital. One hundred patients over the age of 18, having chronic diabetic foot ulcer, and attending the diabetic foot outpatient department were included. Samples of pus were collected from deep wounds and processed using standard techniques for culture Results: One hundred samples were processed and 82 yielded positive cultures. Staphylococcus aureus was the predominant organism, followed by Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Then E coli, Klebsiella and Proteus Conclusion: The organisms causing chronic diabetic foot ulcers were commonly Staphylococcus aureus followed by Pseudomonas aeruginosa