Foot Self-Care: Knowledge, Practices, and Influencing Factors among Patients with Diabetes in All Base Hospitals, Colombo District, Sri Lanka

Background: Diabetes Mellitus (DM) is characterized by elevated blood glucose levels. It is a very common and manageable health problem faced by many countries in the world. Diabetic foot is an infection, ulceration, or destruction of the tissue of the foot of a person diagnosed with DM. The study aimed to assess the knowledge and practices towards foot self-care and its associated factors among patients with DM attending diabetic clinics at all Base Hospitals in Colombo District, Sri Lanka. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 423 participants selected by using a systematic random sampling technique. Data were collected using a validated and pre-tested interviewer-administered questionnaire. Descriptive and inferential analysis was performed using Statistical Packages for Social Sciences version (26) software. A p-value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant at all levels. Results: The majority of the participants were females (71.2%). Only 22.5% of the participants had a good knowledge level regarding foot self-care. There were statistically significant associations between gender, hospital, and family history of DM with the level of knowledge regarding foot self-care practice (p<0.05). Females (60.5 ±19.7) had a higher mean knowledge score than males (55.4 ±23.7) and the people attending District General Hospital Avissawella had the highest mean knowledge score (67.9 ±21.6) than other hospitals. Only 27.9% of the participants reported a good practice level related to diabetic foot care. Participants’ gender, attending hospitals and type of medication are the factors associated with level of practice (p <0.05). Conclusion: Nearly one-third of the patients demonstrated poor knowledge regarding foot self-care while over half of the participants exhibited satisfactory practices. Enhancing knowledge and better foot self-care practices are essential to prevent further complications of Diabetic Foot.