Shania Shayal Prasad 
The CWM Hospital in Suva has reported over 560 diabetes-related foot surgeries in the first half of this year.
Nearly 30% of these were major amputations.
Vascular Surgeon Dr. Sela Koyamaibole confirms these alarming figures, highlighting the urgent need for greater awareness and prevention to save limbs and lives.
He says the hospital is dealing with the high caseload through a multi-disciplinary team approach.
Dr. Koyamaibole says fear of amputation persists, however, this could lead to more severe complications.
“We still see a lot of cases that come in very late, and that can be due to, again, the mindset. A lot of people have that fear that as soon as they come to hospital, they’ll get amputated, so that fear of coming early.”
Medical Officer at the Diabetes Centre, Dr. Anesh Chand, outlines key risk factors people should monitor closely.
“So that is family history of diabetes, if they have physical inactivity, meaning they do not regularly exercise, and they are obese, meaning quite high in the weight, obesity category.”
With timely care, health professionals believe many of these amputations can be avoided in the future.
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