The incidence of claw toes in diabetic and non-diabetic patients in a podiatry department

Abstract

It has been suggested that claw toes occurring in the diabetic foot are a result of motor neuropathy; however, the incidence and cause of this deformity in the non-diabetic foot has not been fully investigated. This study examined the frequency of claw toe deformity in a random sample of diabetic and non-diabetic patients attending a podiatry department for foot care treatment. The incidence of neuropathy and limited joint mobility (LJM) was also investigated. One hundred and ninety-seven patients were assessed: 80 without diabetes and 117 with diabetes (30 with type 1 diabetes mellitus (DM) and 87 with type 2 DM; mean disease duration was 18 and 6 years respectively). There was found to be no difference in the incidence of claw toes and LJM in people with and without diabetes who were investigated, though those with diabetes did have an increased incidence of neuropathy, which was statistically significant. This suggests claw toes may not be directly attributed to sensorimotor neuropathy in diabetes as once thought. Copyright (C) 2000 John Wiley and Sons Ltd.