The Relationship between Foot Care Behaviors and Metabolic Control Criterıa of the Elderly wıth Diabetes

Purpose: The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between foot care behaviors and metabolic control parameters of the elderly individuals diagnosed with diabetes. Methods: The study was carried out as a descriptive study in a training and research hospital between February and July 2017. The study was conducted with patients diagnosed with diabetes. Data of the research; the questionary form was obtained with some laboratory results from the foot care scale (FCS) and patient records. Results: This study was completed with 135 patients. The diabetic foot care scale mean score of the patients was 45.8 ± 8.9 and the mean of metabolic control values was high. HbA1c, fasting blood glucose, waist circumference, body mass index, triglyceride score averages, diabetic foot care scale mean score was found to decrease. Conclusion: In this study, it was found that there was a relation between the metabolic control criteria of the elderly individuals and the mean score of diabetic foot care scale, and the mean score of diabetic foot care scale was lower in the patients who did not have enough metabolic control. For this reason, it may be suggested to give training for patients to provide metabolic control and to prevent complications.