Rat bite as a cause of diabetic foot ulcer in sub‐Saharan Africa

• Published in: International wound journal Vol. 17; no. 4; pp. 897 - 899
• Main Authors: Abbas, Zulfiqarali G., Lutale, Janet K., Archibald, Lennox K., Jeffcoate, William J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01-08-2020
• Subjects: Africa, diabetic foot ulcer, infection, neuropathy; Original; Rat bite; Africa, diabetic foot ulcer, infection, neuropathy; Rat bite
• DOI: 10.1111/iwj.13346
• EISSN: 1742-481X
• ISSN: 1742-4801

There have been relatively few reports of foot ulcers in diabetes resulting from rat bite. The findings were derived from people attending a single specialist service in Dar es Salaam for diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) between 1 January 1999 and 31 December 2016. Details from people presenting for the first time with an ulcer judged to be caused by rat bite were compared with those with from other causes of foot ulcer. There were 426 first recorded foot ulcer episodes (in 179 people) judged to be caused by rat bite. The affected population was significantly younger (mean 55.9 vs 57.5 years, P = .037) and had a lower body mass index (26.5 vs 27.9, P = .008) than controls with other types of foot ulcer. They also presented significantly sooner (7.8 vs 18.2 days, P < .001) and were more likely to heal (85.8 vs 5.5%, P < .001), even though there was also a trend towards an increased risk of death (9.1% vs 5.3%, P = .032). Rat bite is an uncommon cause of DFU, but is not rare. Although the incidence of ulcer healing is higher than in a general foot ulcer population, the incidence of death is also higher.