By Brian McCurdy, Senior Editor

   Given that osteomyelitis can have serious consequences in the diabetic foot, a recently published study online in Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice identifies several risk factors that may facilitate earlier diagnosis of bone infection.

   Researchers studied 1,666 patients with diabetes from two large primary care facilities in south Texas. They defined osteomyelitis as a positive culture from a bone specimen. Over a mean follow-up period of 27.2 months, 151 patients developed foot infections and 30 of these p