TRENCH FOOT

The trenches have took some heavy rain,therefore the floor is wet and muddy the walls are slippy and even the dugouts that we sleep in are poor. We are putting wood along the floor to avoid trench foot. TRENCH FOOT is an infection of the feet caused by cold, wet and insanitary conditions. In the trenches men stood for hours on end in waterlogged trenches without being able to remove wet socks or boots. The feet would gradually go numb and the skin would turn red or blue. If untreated, trench foot could turn gangrenous and result in amputation. Trench foot was a particular problem in the early stages of the war. For example, during the winter of 1914-15 over 20,000 men in the British Army were treated for trench foot.