Heat. Something people living in the Gulf region know all about. As I write this editorial, the forecasted temperatures for Dubai and Sharjah are to reach over 47 degrees this week — fairly normal for this time of the year, but remarkable nonetheless.
With heat comes a host of problems for our patients. Heat makes the wearing of dressings and compression garments especially, very comfortable. Associated sweating and moisture can disturb the balance in a wound, not to mention providing a perfect medium through which microbes and bugs can thrive. Infection rates are still high, not just in the Gulf region, but also across the world and practitioners still fight to recognise signs and symptoms. For those of you with an interest in the diabetic foot in particular, I would recommend visiting our website (www.woundsme.com) to download the consensus document on ‘Identification and Management of Infection in Diabetic Foot Ulcers’. You will find it in the Consensus Document section on the right of the homepage. The document was supported by educational grants from industry and developed by the Gulf Diabetic Foot Working Group, together with a panel of international experts, and it provides clinicians in the region with a practical educational tool through which to recognise, manage and treat diabetic foot infections.
