[Estimate of cost for diabetic foot treatment; how to prevent it and save funds].

In this work the cost of hospital treatment for diabetic foot wounds was estimated and the literature regarding prophylaxis for these lesions was examined. For this purpose, the records of all patients with diabetic foot symptoms submitted to surgical treatment over a period of 16 months in a public hospital were reviewed. There were 44 admissions with an average hospitalization period of 11.93 days, (± 6.34), 61 surgical procedures, with amputations in 65% of the cases. An average cost of R$ 4,367.05 (± 9249.01) and a total cost of R$ 192,150.40 was calculated for the hospital treatment involved. Treatment of diabetic foot symptoms had a high cost and required amputation in the majority of cases. A review of the literature revealed many possible models to be adopted for action in the prophylaxis of wounds associated with the diabetic foot, which can avoid amputations and save funds.