Scurvy causing poor wound healing in diabetes

Scurvy may be an overlooked cause of poorly healing foot ulcers in people with diabetes, Australian endocrinologists say.

Vitamin C deficiency was surprisingly common among patients who attended Sydney’s Westmead diabetes clinic with delayed-healing lower-limb ulcers and a poor diet.

In a review of 11 patients who had poorly healing ulcers and underwent vitamin C testing, the researchers found that seven were vitamin C deficient, with average levels of 19µmol/L.

Vitamin C deficiency was linked to low income, old age, alcoholism, smoking and renal impairment, showed the study, published in