DiaBSmart
The DiaBSmart project aimed to generate, transfer, and exchange clinical, academic, and production knowledge between partners to create a new generation of diabetic footwear.
This successful cross-sector collaboration ensured patient needs were effectively translated to product development using a scientific approach.
The objectives were to:
- Design and develop an integrated diabetic foot assessment system.
- Validate the system experimentally.
- Develop suitable materials to meet mechanical and clinical requirements.
- Evaluate material effectiveness in reducing foot complication risks.
The interdisciplinary, cross-sector approach combined clinical and biomechanical assessment, material science, and design. This unique collaboration enhanced knowledge and impacted new product development, providing clinical and economic benefits.
A key deliverable was next-generation “smart” insole materials that optimized mechanical properties to minimize/redistribute plantar pressure and tissue stress in high-risk foot areas. By significantly influencing disease progression, the end product aimed to reduce limb loss risk in diabetes patients, the leading cause of non-traumatic lower limb amputations.
The DiaBSmart project was successfully completed, accomplishing its goals and objectives through collaborative innovation. The outcomes advanced diabetic footwear and demonstrate the value of cross-sector partnerships in impactful medical product development.
Our Previous Work
A method for subject-specific modelling and optimisation of the cushioning properties of insole materials used in diabetic footwear.
P.E. Chatzistergos, R. Naemi, N. Chockalingam (2015). Medical Engineering and Physics.
The Effectiveness of Footwear and Other Removable Off-loading Devices in the Treatment of Diabetic Foot Ulcers: A Systematic Review
Healy, A., Naemi, R. and Chockalingam, N. (2014). Current Diabetes Reviews, 10(4): 215-230.
The effectiveness of footwear as an intervention to prevent diabetic foot ulceration or to reduce biomechanical risk factors for ulceration: a systematic review.
Healy, A., Naemi, R. and Chockalingam, N. (2013). Journal of Diabetes and Its Complications, 27(4): 391-400.