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The researchers have come up with a shoe sole that could help make the healing process more portable for people who develop ulcers as a result of diabetes.
Diabetic ulcers usually result from hyperglycemia caused by nerve damage that removes any sensation of sensation on the toes or feet.
"One of the ways to heal these wounds is to give them oxygen," said Babak Ziaie, a professor at Purdue University in the United States.
"We have created a system that gradually releases oxygen throughout the day so that a patient can have more mobility."
Without the ability to feel pain, blows and bumps tend to go unnoticed and the skin tissue breaks down forming ulcers.
The amount of sugar in the blood as well as the dry skin resulting from diabetes further slows the healing process of the ulcer.
The researchers used lasers to shape the silicone rubber into the insoles, then create tanks that release oxygen only to the part of the foot where the ulcer is located.
"Silicone is flexible and has good permeability to oxygen," said Hongjie Jiang, a post-doctoral researcher at the university.
"Laser machining helps us adjust this permeability and target only the site of the wound, which is hypoxic, rather than poisoning the rest of the foot with too much oxygen," he added. Jiang.
In an article published in the journal Materials Research Society Communications, the team said that the insole could provide oxygen at least eight hours a day under the pressure of a person weighing between 53 and 81 kg.
It can also be customized to take any weight, the study said.
The team plans to send a package of pre-filled and customized soles to a patient based on the site of the wound, based on the "wound profile" obtained from the doctor's prescription and a picture of the foot.
"This is a low-cost mass customization," said Vaibhav Jain, research associate at Purdue.
A patent is pending on the technology of the insole. The team is currently looking for corporate partners.
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