Trench foot

Immersion foot
Trench foot as seen on an unidentified soldier during World War I
Classification and external resources
ICD-10	T69.0
ICD-9	991.4
DiseasesDB	31219

Trench foot is a medical condition caused by prolonged exposure of the feet to damp, unsanitary, and cold conditions. It is one of many immersion foot syndromes. The use of the word trench in the name of this condition is a reference to trench warfare, mainly associated with World War I.

History

Trench foot was first noted in Napoleon's army in 1812. It was during the retreat from Russia that it became prevalent, and was first described by French army surgeon Dominique Jean Larrey.^[1]

It was a particular problem for soldiers in trench warfare during the winters of World War I,^[2] World War II, and the Vietnam War.

Trench foot made a reappearance in the British Army during the Falklands War in 1982.^[3] The causes were the cold, wet conditions and insufficiently waterproof DMS boots.

Some people were even reported to have developed trench foot at the 1998 and 2007 Glastonbury Festivals, the 2009 and 2013 Leeds Festivals as well as the 2012 Download Festival, as a result of the sustained cold, wet, and muddy conditions at the events.^[4]

Characteristics

Affected feet may become numb, affected by erythrosis (turning red) or cyanosis (turning blue) as a result of poor vascular supply, and feet may begin to have a decaying odor due to the possibility of the early stages of necrosis setting in. As the condition worsens, feet may also begin to swell. Advanced trench foot often involves blisters and open sores, which lead to fungal infections; this is sometimes called tropical ulcer (jungle rot).

If left untreated, trench foot usually results in gangrene, which can cause the need for amputation. If trench foot is treated properly, complete recovery is normal, though it is marked by severe short-term pain when feeling returns.

Causes

Unlike frostbite, trench foot does not require freezing temperatures and can occur in temperatures up to 60° Fahrenheit (about 16° Celsius). The condition can occur with as little as thirteen hours' exposure. The mechanism of tissue damage is not fully understood. Excessive sweating or hyperhidrosis has long been regarded as a contributory cause.^[5]

Prevention

Trench foot can be prevented by keeping the feet clean, warm, and dry. It was also discovered in World War I that a key preventive measure was regular foot inspections. Soldiers would be paired and each made responsible for the feet of the other. They would generally apply whale oil to prevent trench foot. If left to their own devices, soldiers might neglect to take off their own boots and socks to dry their feet each day, but if it were the responsibility of another this became less likely.^[6] Later on in the war, as soldiers were becoming more mobile due to the rotating shifts between different trench defensive lines as well as placing wooden floorboards to cover the muddy wet cold ground surfaces in the trenches, instances of trench foot began to decrease.

See also

• Chilblain
• Immersion foot syndromes
• Trench fever
• Trench mouth

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Trench foot.