This problem, whose prevalence continues to increase, can pose a serious health risk
According to estimates by the World Health Organization, in the world from the current 420 million people with diabetes mellitus it will reach 640 million in 2040. On that date, according to data from the Arno Diabete Observatory of the Italian Society of Diabetes and Cineca, around 3.5 million individuals will suffer from this disease in Italy alone, equal to over 6% of the population. These are numbers that should not be overlooked, also because this pathology can have serious complications. One of these is the diabetic foot.
THE TWO TYPES OF DIABETIC FOOT
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Diabetic foot is a chronic complication of diabetes mellitus, which causes both anatomical and functional problems in this part of the body and also in the ankle. The characteristic symptoms of the disease are the increase in temperature, reduced sensitivity, tingling and the appearance of cuts and ulcers charged to the art. Particularly dangerous are skin lesions, which expose the foot to the serious risk of infections, which in the worst cases can even lead to amputation. According to the Ministry of Health, between 2019 and 2021 in Italy there were on average 6,500 foot amputations a year caused by diabetes. It is usual to distinguish two types of diabetic foot. The first, called neuropathic, occurs when damage is caused by altered blood glucose levels on the nerve. The second, defined neuroischiemic, is a consequence of the vascular deficit, with a decrease in blood flow in this district of the body due to the alteration of the blood vessels of the legs caused by diabetes.
VIPER: A PROJECT TO PREVENT ULCERS
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To detect ischemic phenomena at an early stage and prevent ulcerative lesions in people suffering from diabetic foot, the science project Viperwhose goal is toidentify specific inflammatory markers thanks to the data collected on patients through wearable devices. This data will be entered into a telemedicine platform that allows remote monitoring. “The identification of biomarker innovations of ischemic and inflammatory processes, associated with the possibility of monitor the inflammatory state of the limbs in these patients, will represent a turning point in the early identification and management of neuroischaemic complications in the person with diabetic foot. This multifactorial approach combined with a careful clinical evaluation will allow the care of the individual patient in a perspective of precision medicine, with positive effects on the management and therapeutic education of the patient and with the consequent improvement of the quality of life of the same, as well as sustainability of the health system” underlines the Professor Elena Tremoliscientific director and director of the Experimental Laboratory of the Maria Cecilia Hospital in Cotignola (Ra), the structure that coordinates the project Viper and reference center in the treatment of diabetic foot.
DIABETIC FOOT: TWO SMART DEVICES FOR ACTIVE MONITORING
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In particular, the project Viper foresees it development of a sensorized sock to measure the temperature of the foot and of an insole, also sensorized, able to detect the pressure exerted on the foot. These devices will be connected to a telemedicine platform, so as to integrate the data recorded by these tools with clinical ones. Goal of the project Viper is therefore to consider the approach to the person with diabetic foot in an innovative way, orienting it towards the preservation of the limb. “This project opens new perspectives in the direction of art conservation: we are in fact able to carry out an early diagnosis of the neuroischaemic complications of diabetes affecting the lower limbs, with a view to preventing them and ulcerative conditions that would require a surgical approach” explains Professor Luca Dalla Paolahead of the operating unit for the medical and surgical treatment of the diabetic foot Maria Cecilia Hospital.
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