Objectives: to verify the association between knowledge and adherence to foot self-care practices performed by patients with diabetes mellitus type 2. Methods: cross-sectional, descriptive study carried out with 197 patients in basic health units located in the Northeast region of Brazil. For data collection, we used a semi-structured questionnaire that addressed issues inherent to knowledge and Diabetes Self-Care Activities. Results: we observed that patients with moderate knowledge about

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... care practices were more likely to perform foot self-examination, dry the interdigital spaces, moisturize their feet with creams and oils, observe the presence of mycosis and ingrown toenail when compared to patients with insufficient knowledge. Conclusions: the patients' level of knowledge was closely related to the self-care activities carried out, which reinforces the importance of nurses working on training those on essential health care.