Hypozincemia in Mexican patients with diabetic foot ulcer treated out of hospital.

OBJECTIVE: To know the frequency of people with hypozincemia in a group of Mexican patients with Diabetic Foot Ulcers (DFU)m and its relationship with metabolic and clinical profile.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: Cross-sectional, analytical, and observational study in patients with and without DFU, treated in Family Medicine Units from Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social (IMSS) in Mérida, Yucatán, México. Frequency of hypozincemia (Zn serum < 70 g/ml) and its relationship with the levels of Glycosylated Hemoglobin (HbA1c), cholesterol and triglycerides was analyzed.

RESULTS: 70% of patients with DFU and 25% without DFU had hypozincemia (OR = 5.2, 95% CI 2.139-12.65, p = 0.0004). Patients with hypozincemia were older and the highest prevalence was between 50 and 60 years. The average area of the DFU showed no differences in patients with and without hypozincemia. Patients with DFU reported higher levels of HbA1c, cholesterol, triglycerides, BMI, and blood pressure compared to patients without DFU. Hypozincemia was associated with higher BMI values.

CONCLUSION: The frequency of hypozincemia in diabetic patients with UPD is high and is behaving as a risk factor for presenting UPD, so its identification should be routine.