CONTENTS
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Shoes - Foot Protection, Not Fashion
Most of us take our feet for granted.
We might get blisters if we walk too far, or corns, especially if our shoes don't fit properly, and the unlucky ones get bunions. But, there they are at the end of our legs and very useful they are to get us from one place to another.
As for shoes - most of us have several pairs - in different colours and styles which we match with our clothes or our mood, or what we are doing; best shoes, walking shoes, gardening shoes, slippers, sandals, high heels, low heels, no heels, the possibilities are, if not endless, certainly many.
In many parts of the world shoes are special, for big occasions - not for ordinary use, if the weather is always good and warm why bother?
But, what if you didn't have any feeling in your feet? so you didn't know that there was a great blister on the heel, or a thorn had gone into the sole, or a stone had cut the toes.
If we get blisters or tired feet we limp to protect the injured part as best we can, but if you can't feel anything you put just as much pressure on the bad foot as on the good one.
That is what leprosy does when it affects the nerves of the feet and legs. Nerves are messengers to and from the brain either to tell a part of the body to do something or to tell the brain that something is happening to a part of the body. When the messengers stop functioning in any part the brain cannot take over and issue warnings, 'there is a thorn in your sole', 'the ground is too hot to walk on', 'these stones are sharp'. The nerves don't speak to the brain so the brain doesn't say, 'stop! get the thorn out', or, 'put some shoes on to walk on the hot road or sharp stones'.
Hands and feet are usually the first places to be affected by untreated leprosy and special care must therefore be taught to new patients to help them avoid permanent damage, or to limit the damage already done. They have to be told to inspect their feet at least once a day, to look for open sores, dry and hard skin and any other damage. They have to be told how to treat any damage they find and to seek advice if there is no improvement. They have to be told how to limp to protect a damaged foot which they cannot feel as sore, they have to be helped to find appropriate footware and how to look after it.
The word Footwear, instead of shoes, may sound uncaring but each patient requires individual assessment of need to avoid the wrong sort of footwear making the situation worse, which is why a recurring theme in reports is the existence and training of shoemakers.
Next time you take off a new pair with the comment that they will soon wear in, be thankful that you can feel the difference.
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Directing you to the St Francis Leprosy Guild Website, thank you for your patience.
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