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Healing Feet with Retin-A

By Henry J. Fishman, M.D.
ConsumerAffairs.com

December 8, 2005

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Okay so it's not sexy, but it is important to thousands of diabetics and their families. Retin-A, a skin cream used to treat acne and prevent wrinkles seems to help diabetic foot ulcers heal, according to an article published in the Archives of Dermatology.

Researchers treated 24 men with diabetic foot ulcers for a month with either Retin-A or a placebo. Retin-A solutions were left on the ulcers for ten minutes, rinsed off with salt water and coated with iodine gel.

After four months, 46 percent of those in the treatment group healed completely as compared to only 18 percent in the placebo group. Importantly, 85 percent of those people treated with Retin-A saw the ulcer shrink by at least half.

That is an excellent result. Fifteen percent of diabetics develop foot ulcers because of nerve damage and poor circulation.

The ulcers are painful, get infected and are hard to treat which is why Retin-A can help a lot of people.

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