Diabetic foot ulcer: a systematic review of risk factors

The development of DFUs may be associated with various factors, including: a history of previous DFUs; amputation or clinical atherosclerosis syndrome, such as peripheral arterial and cerebrovascular disease; the severity of diabetes; and various clinical signs regarding the patient's foot. The low certainty of evidence for most of these factors indicates that there is still a gap in knowledge regarding the early detection of foot ulcers in people with diabetes. A large prospective study could identify more precisely which factors are the most significant. Contemporary technology could use such data to create devices that would be able to predict DFUs so they can be prevented or treated earlier, which would reduce the possibility of lower limb amputation.