ViscoTurf - Treatment of Diabetic Foot Ulceration

Diabetic foot ulcers are a major source of morbidity and resource use for patients with diabetes. According to NHS England, 3.2m people in the UK have diabetes and the worldwide diabetic population was 422m in 2014. The lifetime risk of a diabetic foot ulcer is 25%, with 15% of these leading to amputation, 85% of all lower-limb amputations. In the UK an estimated 169,000 people had a diabetic foot ulcer in 2012/13, 5% of adult patients. Management of DFU is time-consuming and expensive, with 45% of ulcers taking more than six months to heal. An analysis estimated that total expenditure in England is £580 million per year and a mean cost of £3,715 per patient. We propose a system that will cut the link between ulceration and amputation through effective, low-cost orthoses designed to treat foot ulceration. This is made possible by, ViscoTurf, an innovative orthotic design concept that emulates the function of natural turf to provide cushioning, and optimised offloading leading to improved blood circulation. The objectives of this project are to generate evidence that the ViscoTurf technology effectively improves perfusion and promotes healing, and that the design process for the orthoses can be automated in a scalable manner.