Diabetic Foot Guide is written by a practising podiatric foot and ankle surgeon, for people whose feet are at risk and for the families and clinicians around them.
Who writes this
Dr. Tom Biernacki, DPM, FACFAS is a double board-certified podiatric foot and ankle surgeon practising in Michigan, and a Fellow of the American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons. He owns Balance Foot & Ankle, a two-location practice in Howell and Bloomfield Hills, where diabetic wounds, infections, Charcot neuroarthropathy, at-risk foot examinations and therapeutic footwear are daily work rather than a specialist interest.
His individual NPI is 1821330051 and can be verified in the national provider registry.
What that means for what you read here
The pages on this site describe decisions the author actually makes — when to cast rather than boot, when a normal X-ray still means Charcot, when a wound needs vascular assessment rather than another dressing. That is a different thing from an article assembled from other articles, and it is the only reason this site has a claim on your attention.
What this site covers
The diabetic foot, specifically
Ulcers, wound care, Charcot neuroarthropathy, infection and bone infection, amputation prevention, skin and nail changes, and the footwear that prevents recurrence.
The reasoning, not just the conclusion
Why a treatment works, what the alternative costs, and what the evidence actually says — with the paper cited so you can check.
The system, too
Medicare’s therapeutic shoe benefit, what qualifies, who has to sign what. Coverage rules decide what patients actually receive, and almost nobody explains them.
What it does not cover
Peripheral neuropathy in general — its causes, symptoms and treatment — is covered on a separate site rather than duplicated here.
The rules we hold ourselves to
- Sources are named. Where a page states a figure, it cites the study it came from, with a link.
- Uncertainty is stated as uncertainty. Where the evidence is thin or contested, the page says so rather than picking the more confident-sounding version.
- No product is recommended without a stated basis. If a page cannot say what was assessed and why, it does not name a pick.
- Commercial relationships are disclosed on the affiliate disclosure page, and never change a clinical position.
- Corrections are made in public. If something here is wrong, tell us and it gets fixed and noted.
The full standard is set out in the editorial policy.
What this site is not
Not a medical service, and not confidential
Reading this site does not create a doctor–patient relationship, and nothing here is a diagnosis or a treatment plan for your foot. This site is not a HIPAA-covered entity: please do not send clinical details, photographs of wounds, or personal health information through it. If you need care, see a clinician in person — and if you are in Michigan, we can see you.