I had a small blister on my foot. I thought nothing of it, until I ended up in hospital with sepsis and was told it needed to be amputated

After a trip, Chris Dolan noticed a blister outside his right foot while removing his socks.

It was apparently harmlessly injured, but it would lead to confront the possibility of his feet – like hundreds of British every week.

However, thanks to an innovative surgical technique, only Chris’s feet were not saved, but also ‘walking’ rugbi.

It’s almost very positive. In June 2023, 50 -year -old Chris and his 57 -year -old wife, Jane, both civil servants, was on a journey in Norway when he developed Blister. Initially, it was about 10mm wide. However, eight weeks later, the blister was infected in a bad way, although it kept meticulously clean and dry.

This was particularly serious, as Chris is a type 1 diabetes, that is, that his body did not produce hormone insulin to control blood sugar levels, so he relied on to inject artificial insulin.

Even if it is well managed, both type 1 and type 2 diabetes can lead to peripheral neuropathy, where glucose at high levels of blood damages the nerves in the extremities over time, causing drowsiness and tingling. If the foot is affected, even patients may experience even if they feel.

In addition to neuropathy on his foot, Chris had developed peripheral arterial disease (PAD), in which the accumulation of fat deposits in the arteries restricted blood source to limbs by combining any nerve damage.

In severe cases (if a slaughter or scratch does not heal and infected in a poor way), peripheral neuropathy may lead to foot or lower extremity amputation. As the number of people with diabetes increases, more than these amputations are realized. According to Charity Diabetes UK, more than 5.8 million people in the UK are now living with diabetes, the highest level of all time.

1.3 million more, because they do not recognize symptoms may not be aware that they have type 2 diabetes. At the NHS Basildon University Hospital in Essex, Shiva Dindyal, a counselor vascular and endovascular surgeon, says “ figures are surprising. ”

It usually sees approximately a patient per day that requires amputation due to diabetes complication. “There is an average of 176 legs, foot fingers or foot amputations in England every week, and there are more than 9,000 limb amputations per year throughout England, M says Mr. Dindyal.

Expressing that having excessive blood sugar ‘damages everything’ explains: ‘Bacteria such as “sugary” blood is more likely to get infection.

‘Amputation is the last resort because it changes someone’s life. The truth is that a patient has only a life expectancy of only 1 percent five years after an amputation. This usually leads to complications that do not heal due to other health problems or diabetes such as high blood pressure or cardiovascular disease. ‘The first step is a procedure – an anjioplasty that expands narrowed arteries using a inflated balloon or stent to allow the blood to flow back to the feet. If this fails, the ‘only option’ is a Bypass process, says Mr. Dindyal.

Here, an artery, usually taken from the upper thigh, is combined to another blood vessel below the leg to the feet.

Two months after Blister first appeared, Chris was disturbed by fever as a result of foot infection. Sepsis and James Cook were accepted to the University Hospital. Fortunately, it was treated in time and was discharged three weeks later.

In addition to getting antibiotics, he wore a special compression dressing to promote blood circulation to the ulcerous feet. However, the wound became a hole of 30 mm and 15 mm deep. “It looked terrible as you could see the bone, Chris Chris from Middlesbrough said. ‘But I wasn’t in pain because the nerves had been damaged over the years.’

Shiva Dindyal, Consultant Vascular and Endovascular Surgeon at NHS Basildon University Hospital in Essex

“There is an average of 176 legs, foot finger or foot amputation every week in the UK, there are more than 9,000 limb amputations per year throughout England,” says Mr. Dindyal

After two months of vacuum treatment in the infected right foot, the wound was still not fully healed and Chris was warned that the right foot should be cut under the knee if the infection could not be cured successfully. However, two weeks later, his advisor told him that another expert in the same hospital could help.

Ian Nichol, a counselor vascular surgeon, uses a new technique in which a vein from the upper leg (instead of artery) is used to skip a blockage and improve blood flow to the feet.

The technique was only realized in a small number of centers worldwide.

Mr. Nichol has treated about 25 patients in the last three years and about 70 percent of success in recovering a patient from amputation.

Mr Nichol explains: ‘Patients like Chris have what we call the “desert foot” of the non -arteries that are beyond the ankle and to provide blood to the feet. Without this, the tissue can be broken and die. This becomes an ulcer or gangrene that does not heal.

‘This new technique is different. Without an artery to work, this Bypass graft procedure often makes an artery of an artery that remains sick. ‘He says:’ We remove the pure vein that is close to the surface of the skin and extends to the calf from the thigh. This vessel is then reversed, glued to the popliteal artery under the knee and combined to a deep vein that works like an ankle level, so the blood flows in the opposite direction, takes it to the feet. ‘

The vessels carry blood back to the body and lungs to get more oxygen.

Mr. Nichol says: ‘The valves that draw veins and prevent the blood from flowing back due to gravity should be destroyed by piercing them. This allows blood to flow in a normal artery. This is a challenging operation because the vessel under the ankle is quite small – 2mm diameter.

Ian Nichol, a counselor vascular surgeon, uses a technique called reverse venous arterialization – a vein from the upper leg was used to skip a blockage

‘This operation is not for everyone,’ he adds. “ Some people do not have appropriate vessels and some have sufficiently to try different procedures and have an amputation. But I hope it becomes more routine. It can prevent more patients from losing their lower leg. ‘

Chris had an eight -hour procedure in December 2023. He relied on the wheelchair for a year, and even though he did not suffer, he admitted that he felt depressed due to lack of mobility.

“Sometimes I wondered if I would have amputation because I was learning to walk again after six weeks, or he says. ‘But now I’m happy to have not lost my foot – it was great to get up and start using walking poles.’

There is still a 5 mm ulcer in his feet, but he is finally thought to heal.

‘Blood is now on my feet,’ says Chris. “ I still can’t walk away, but I walked the rugbi. I hope this operation can help others like me avoid an amputation. ‘