Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2022 Oct 22;14(10):e30591.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.30591. eCollection 2022 Oct.

A Review on Newer Interventions for the Prevention of Diabetic Foot Disease

Sanket Tekale  1 , Anuj Varma  1 , Shubhangi Tekale  2 , Unnati Kumbhare  1
Affiliations
Review

A Review on Newer Interventions for the Prevention of Diabetic Foot Disease

Sanket Tekale et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Diabetic foot disease (DFD), which includes ulcers on the foot, infections, and gangrene of the foot, is one of the leading causes of disability worldwide. About half of diabetic foot disease (DFD) patients have a recurrence in less than a year. To alleviate the burden of DFD globally, it is essential to give long-term medication to reduce the likelihood of recurrence. The effectiveness of telemedicine, wearable technologies, and sensors in DFD prevention is discussed in this review. Offloading footwear helps to cure and prevent ulcerated diabetic foot by distributing physical stress away from bony prominences. Sensors and wearables can record the temperatures of the foot, blood pressure (BP), and blood sugar levels and estimate lipid profile. These technologies have offered a practical means of reaching individuals in rural areas with a heightened risk of developing DFD. There is less need for in-person consultations with this strategy. This methodology is simple to operate and lessens reliance on patients. The benefits of adopting these remote monitoring approaches have been demonstrated in some studies with DFD-at-risk individuals. It is required to do more analysis to ascertain the effectiveness and value of incorporating different remote monitoring systems as part of an all-encompassing strategy to prevent DFD.

Keywords: diabetic foot disease; foot injuries; prevention; remote monitoring; sensors; technologies; telehealth.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Interventions for the prevention of diabetic foot disease.
DFU: diabetic foot ulcer Image credit: the authors of the current review
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Global epidemiology of diabetic foot ulceration: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Zhang P, Lu J, Jing Y, et al. Ann Med. 2017;49:106–116. - PubMed
    1. Diabetic foot ulcers and their recurrence. Armstrong DG, Boulton AJM, Bus SA. N Engl J Med. 2017;376:2367–2375. - PubMed
    1. Global disability burdens of diabetes-related lower-extremity complications in 1990 and 2016. Zhang Y, Lazzarini PA, McPhail SM, et al. Diabetes Care. 2020;43:964–974. - PubMed
    1. The pivotal role of offloading in the management of neuropathic foot ulceration. Wu SC, Crews RT, Armstrong DG. Curr Diab Rep. 2005;5:423–429. - PubMed
    1. International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot: IWGDF guidance on footwear and offloading interventions to prevent and heal foot ulcers in patients with diabetes: IWGDF Guidance on Footwear and Offloading. Bus SA, Armstrong DG, van Deursen RW, et al. Diabetes Metab Res Rev. 2016;32:25–36. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources