UTARI’s Veysel Erel, PhD, and Aida Nasirian show their diabetic shoe technology. Image courtesy of UT Arlington.
Researchers at the University of Texas at Arlington Research Institute (UTARI) have developed a new shoe insole technology that helps reduce the risk of diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs).
“The goal of this innovative insole technology is to mitigate the risk of diabetic foot ulcers by addressing one of their most significant causes: skin and soft tissue breakdown due to repetitive stress on the foot during walking,” said Muthu B.J. Wijesundara, PhD, principal research scientist at UTARI.
“Although many shoe insoles have been created over the years to try to alleviate the problem of foot ulcers, studies have shown that their success in preventing them is marginal,” he said. “We took the research a step further by creating a pressure-alternating shoe insole that works by cyclically relieving pressure from different areas of the foot, thereby providing periods of rest to the soft tissues and improving blood flow. This approach aims to maintain the health of the skin and tissues, thereby reducing the risk of diabetic foot ulcers.”
With the pilot project having been successfully completed, the next step for the research team will be refining the technology to make it more accessible for users with varying weights and shoe sizes.
