AI could help prevent half of all diabetes-related amputations: experts

KARACHI: Artificial intelligence could help prevent up to half of the nearly 300,000 diabetes-related amputations performed annually in Pakistan, around 34 every hour, by detecting foot wounds early, assessing their severity and ensuring timely treatment and specialist referral, experts said on Sunday.

Speaking on the concluding day of the International Conference on Diabetes & Diabetic Foot 2026 in Karachi, consultant orthopaedic surgeon and AI/telehealth strategist Dr Suhail Chughtai said AI could be used to identify diabetic foot wounds from photographs, assess their severity, monitor healing and flag patients requiring urgent specialist care before their condition progresses to amputation.

Presenting a model for an “AI-Enabled Digital Diabetic Foot Clinic” for Pakistan, Dr Chughtai said patients could register on a digital platform, upload photographs of their wounds and provide their medical history for AI-assisted assessment.

The technology could detect wounds, identify their boundaries, estimate their area, assess tissue and colour characteristics and compare changes with earlier photographs. Patients could then receive an instant risk assessment and wound-care guidance, while moderate and high-risk cases could automatically be connected with diabetologists, podiatrists and wound-care specialists.

The proposed system could also offer teleconsultations, appointment reminders and continued monitoring, creating a patient pathway from screening and AI-assisted triage to specialist referral, prompt treatment and follow-up.

Director Baqai Institute of Diabetology and Endocrinology (BIDE) Prof. Zahid Miyan said nearly 300,000 diabetes-related amputations were being performed annually in Pakistan, averaging around 34 every hour, although many could be prevented through early recognition, timely referral and appropriate treatment.

He said more than three million Pakistanis were living with diabetes-related foot wounds, while around 18 percent of people with diabetes develop foot ulcers. Around 43.2 percent of Pakistani patients with diabetes suffer peripheral neuropathy, which can reduce sensation and prevent patients from noticing foot injuries until they become serious.

Prof Miyan said a 24-hour diabetic foot helpline had also been launched, while Pakistan’s first two-year postgraduate diploma dedicated to diabetic foot care would begin its first batch in January 2027.

Conference organising committee chairman Dr Muhammad SaifUl Haque said diabetic foot management required a multidisciplinary approach because even a seemingly minor wound could progress to serious infection and amputation if diagnosis, referral or treatment was delayed.

He said greater awareness, trained healthcare professionals and coordinated management involving different specialties could save thousands of limbs and lives.

Prof. Tariq Waseem said continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) could improve management of diabetic foot ulcers by providing information beyond HbA1c, including glucose fluctuations and the amount of time patients remained within their recommended glucose range.

Prof. Qamar Masood said CGM could improve glycaemia control and patients’ awareness of their glucose patterns, while Dr SomiaIqtedar said continuous monitoring enabled evidence-based treatment decisions instead of guesswork.

Pakistan Endocrine Society President Dr. Ali Asghar called for addressing both physical and mental health aspects of diabetes. Dr UroojRiaz urged diabetologists to give adequate time to patients and listen to their concerns, while Dr Khurram Daniyal said Karachi alone now had more than 100 dialysis centres, reflecting the growing burden of diabetes and kidney disease.

Experts warned that diabetic foot disease threatened lives as well as limbs, with data presented during the conference showing five-year mortality exceeding 40 percent following minor amputations and more than 50 percent after major amputations.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2026