If you live with type I or type II diabetes, you probably already know that taking care of your foot health is vitally important. The nerve and circulation problems that diabetes can cause make your extremities, including your feet, more vulnerable to injuries and illness than those of non-diabetic people.

Many diabetic people suffer from corns on their feet. While corns do not pose any immediate danger to your health, they can cause serious complications if they worsen or go untreated for a long time. Diabetic people suffering from corns should seek prompt treatment from a professional podiatrist. 

What Are Corns? 

Corns are quite similar to calluses. They are hard, thickened areas of skin, and form on parts of your skin that are frequently placed under stress or friction. However, while calluses form on the surface of your skin, corns are shaped like an inverted cone, and can penetrate deep into the skin of your feet. This means they are usually a lot more painful than simple calluses.

They commonly develop on parts of your feet that rub against your footwear, such as the tops of your toes and the outer edge of your smallest toe. However, they can appear elsewhere if you suffer from a gait problem or deformity (such as weak ankles) that causes you to place pressure on improper parts of your feet when you stand and walk.

Why Should Diabetic People Have Corns Professionally Treated?

Because corns are harder than the healthy skin surrounding them, they damage the healthy surrounding skin as you move. Over time, this damage can cause the skin around the corn to become inflamed and ulcerated, creating open sores on your feet.

Open wounds on the feet are bad news for any diabetic because diabetes slows the healing process in your feet and other extremities. Any sores causing a corn may heal slowly (or not at all), leaving them vulnerable to infection.

Diabetes also weakens your immune system, so an infection caused by an open foot sore can rapidly become a dangerous, systemic infection affecting your entire body. In severe cases, untreated corns in diabetic people can lead to gangrene and other life-threatening complications.

How Do Podiatrists Treat Corns?

Anybody suffering from painful corns will benefit from professional podiatric treatment, but diabetics with corns should visit their podiatrist as soon as possible to avoid possible ulceration. Podiatrists can offer a range of treatments to remove the corn and repair any skin damage that has already occurred.

If your corn is relatively small, your podiatrist may use non-invasive treatments, such as laser therapy or chemical treatment. These therapies break down the hardened plug of skin that forms the corn, and shrink the visible portion of the corn so it no longer protrudes and rubs against your footwear. In many cases, the corn will break down by itself over time after these conservative treatments.

If your corns are larger, your podiatrist can physically remove them using a surgical scalpel. This procedure is often called 'paring', and is performed under a local anaesthetic, so you won't experience any pain or discomfort. Corn paring can remove most or all of a corn in one fell swoop. Your podiatrist will also help you with aftercare, making sure the paring site does not become infected.

For more info, contact a company like Beenleigh Podiatry Centre.