C06: Foot Surgery & Reconstruction (non-vascular)

Many clinicians and patients equate diabetic foot surgery with amputation. Most of it is the opposite: a targeted structural correction that removes the mechanical cause of ulceration so the skin can stay intact. Non-surgical offloading heals most neuropathic plantar ulcers, but the deformity remains, and correcting it removes the cause once instead of treating the effect repeatedly.

The module teaches the procedures one by one: matrixectomy for the recurrent ingrown toenail, flexor tenotomy for the flexible clawed toe, bony procedures for the rigid one, metatarsal head resection and hallux procedures, and tendo-Achilles lengthening or gastrocnemius recession for equinus, with the risk of creating a heel ulcer. Advanced content covers exostectomy versus formal Charcot reconstruction, superconstruct principles and the staged approach to the infected Charcot foot. It is the operative companion to C02, which teaches surgical decisions across all four Armstrong classes, emergency source control and the osteomyelitis decision; those are not repeated here.

Content is tiered at Foundation, Core and Advanced level, with two algorithms and three case vignettes. You receive the Teaching Document, the Evidence Base, the slide deck and a narrated video.