Obese people tend to have a number of comorbidities, including, heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, higher risk of deep vein thrombosis, liver abnormalities (morbid obesity) and the list goes on. When it comes to surgery the BMI of a patient can impact the ease at which the surgery is performed. Obese patients are harder to position for surgery and having to retract large amount of tissue can complicate surgical procedures. However it is the post surgical complications that can be problematic. Obese patients have a significantly higher risk of postoperative complications, such as heart attack, wound infection, nerve injury, and urinary tract infections. Furthermore obese patients (those who are more than 100 pounds over their ideal weight) were almost twice as likely to die as a result of complications following noncardiac surgery. So how does this relate to foot surgery, specifically total ankle replacement?
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