My Foot Wound Won’t Heal! What Should I Do?

A wound on any part of your body is annoying at best and painful at worst. A wound on your foot might irritate as your shoes rub against it, or it could bother you even when you’re barefoot. The friction from moving throughout your day can make healing the foot injury harder, too.

Still, your body should be able to handle the regenerative work. But, if you have a foot wound that isn’t getting better, don’t ignore it. Instead, come see Jon-Cecil Walkes, MD,  and our team at Texas Heart and Vein Multispecialty Group. We offer dedicated wound care to people throughout the Greater Houston metro area, including those with foot wounds.

When to see a doctor for your foot wound

When you first notice a wound on your foot, make note of the date so you can remember it. Then, keep an eye on the wound. We recommend coming to see us if it:

• Hasn’t improved at all within two weeks
• Hasn’t fully healed within six weeks

If it’s been longer than that, your wound can be classified as an ulcer. At that point, it needs targeted treatment to support its healing. Without treatment, you could run into complications like an infection or even gangrene. 

What might be causing the slow healing

In most cases, when you develop a foot ulcer, an underlying health problem is to blame. That could be obesity or a foot condition like a bunion. Often, though, it’s either diabetes or a vascular (blood circulation) issue. 

Diabetic ulcers

When you have an excess amount of sugar in your blood, it interferes with your body’s healing ability. 

Medical researchers have classified diabetic ulcers as one of the most dangerous complications from diabetes. This is doubly true because diabetes can also cause nerve damage. That means you don’t feel the wound when it first develops. 

If you have diabetes, make it a habit to check your feet daily. 

Vascular ulcers

Bad circulation impacts your body’s regenerative processes. You might develop a vascular ulcer because the valves in your veins have malfunctioned, allowing blood to pool there — often in your extremities — instead of circulating properly. 

What to expect with wound care

If you have a slow-healing foot wound, we can step in to apply the treatment it needs. 

We start by evaluating your wound and determining if there are any underlying conditions in play. This allows us to best tailor your care to you. 

We typically clean the wound, then apply treatment to encourage its healing. That could mean growth factor therapy, which supports and stimulates your natural regenerative processes, or compression therapy, during which you wear compression garments on your legs to support healthier circulation. 

We may also recommend medication to fight any infection, or a procedure to remove dead tissue. In more severe cases, we might recommend more involved treatment like a skin graft. 

Typically, the longer you leave a foot wound unaddressed, the bigger the problem becomes. Don’t wait to call our nearest office or book an appointment online today. Our three Houston, Texas, offices service Greater Heights, Pearland Market, League City, Lake Jackson, Manvel, Rosharen, Alvin, Fresno, Missouri City, Arcola, Friendswood, South Houston, Kingwood Market, Humble, New Chaney, Atasciacita, and Northeast Houston.