Memorial Hospital Wound Center Joins Nationwide “White Sock” Campaign To Raise Awareness of Amputation Caused by Untreated Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD)
Center staff wear one white sock in social media challenge to honor amputees and advocate for early diagnosis for patients with PAD
September is Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD) Awareness Month, and staff at Memorial Hospital's Wound Center are participating in the Save a Leg, Save a Life (SALSAL) Foundation’s “white sock” challenge to help educate the Chester community about PAD and have pledged to closely partner with other clinicians involved in the PAD care pathway to help ensure high-risk patients are properly diagnosed and treated before it is too late.
PAD is largely under-recognized, and amputation rates associated with this disease remain unnecessarily high, That’s why we at Memorial Hospital's Wound Center are proud to support the White Sock Campaign and join the other clinicians on the frontlines of care to advocate for accurate diagnosis and timely treatment of patients suffering from the side effects of PAD. We also encourage everyone to be proactive in their own leg health by knowing the risk factors, classic warning signs and to ask their doctor to check their feet for signs of PAD.
Throughout September, the wound healing staff at Memorial Hospital will also spread the message of early PAD detection with one simple and visible tool: a white sock. The garment will be worn as a symbol of PAD and to create solidarity with the many patients who suffered from late-stage PAD and required an amputation due to delayed treatment.
Affecting more than 12 million Americans, PAD is a common, yet serious cardiovascular condition that occurs when arteries in the legs become narrowed or blocked by plaque build-up, reducing blood flow to the limbs. Left untreated, PAD can result in devastating consequences including amputation and early death. Patients with PAD are also at a greater risk of future heart attack and stroke. Despite its prevalence, PAD is historically difficult to diagnose and treat as symptoms are often ignored, masked or confused with the typical aches and pains of aging. As a result, nearly 50 percent of patients with late-stage PAD are left untreated each year, placing them at a greater risk for an amputation.
While treatment for PAD varies based on the severity of disease state, only a physician can determine the best option for a patient based on his or her individual needs. For more information about PAD and treatment options, call Memorial Hospital's Wound Center at 618-826-4583. No referral is required.
About the Save A Leg, Save A Life Foundation (SALSAL):
The Save A Leg, Save A Life Foundation was incorporated as a new non-profit organization in the state of Florida during May of 2015. The organization is poised and excited to make an impact on reducing the number of amputations. The organization will shape and build SALSAL to achieve its goals and to make Save A Leg, Save A Life into a universally recognized phrase and concept, one that resonates and “connects the dots” between non-healing wounds, peripheral arterial disease and amputations, as well as catastrophic events such as heart attack and stroke. For more, visit: www.DocsInSocks.org.
About the White Sock Campaign:
The White Sock Campaign was created by the Save A Leg, Save A Life Foundation in 2013. In partnership with Medtronic, the White Sock Campaign aims to raise awareness of diabetes, peripheral artery disease, and the prevention of amputation. It is an ongoing interactive campaign and anyone can participate. As part of the initiative, the Save A Leg, Save A Life Foundation has developed a pin with a sock on just one end of the ribbon. This is to promote solidarity with amputees, and to signify the many wound care patients that can wear only one shoe, while the foot may be wrapped with a dressing. In many cases, a sock is the only outer garment that will fit over the bulky dressings. For September’s PAD Awareness Month, people are encouraged to take a photo or video of themselves wearing one white sock, share it on their social media channels with the hashtag #DocsInSocks, and tag and challenge others to join the cause.
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