Assessment, diagnosis and management characteristics of people with acute Charcot neuro-osteoarthropathy in a regional Australian health service: A 3-year retrospective audit

Objective

Acute Charcot neuro-osteoarthropathy (CN) is highly destructive, causing bone and joint damage that can result in devastating structural changes to the foot. The objective of this study was to determine the characteristics of assessment, diagnosis and management of people with acute CN attending a large regional Australian health service.

Design

Three-year retrospective medical record audit.

Setting

Large regional health service with catchment area of >250 000 people in regional Australia.

Participants

People with acute CN who attended emergency, orthopaedic clinics or High Risk Foot Clinic (HRFC).

Main Outcome Measures

Participant characteristics and acute CN assessment, diagnosis and management characteristics. Trends in characteristics were investigated according to rurality as measured by the Modified Monash Model (MMM) scale.

Results

Seventeen participants (20 presentations) of acute CN were identified. Mean age was 57.1 ± 10.8 years, with 11 female participants. Median duration to seek help was 31 (IQR 14–47) days. Total Contact Casting was undertaken for 85% of cases, with those who resided in MMM1-2 regions experienced significantly shorter time to TCC therapy compared to those residing in MMM3-7 regions (U = 3.0, p < 0.01). Resolution of acute CN with or without deformity occurred in 70% of cases.

Conclusions

Those who lived in smaller regional and rural communities were more likely to experience delayed access to gold standard treatment for acute CN. Regional models of care for acute CN should include activities to improve the knowledge of people at risk of acute CN about the condition and upskill regional health professionals for timely and local TCC therapy.