Taking care of your feet is an essential reflex for diabetic people. In the event of an injury, poor blood circulation in the legs and lack of oxygen supply to the feet complicates healing. Consequently, a “simple” small injury can become infected and cause a foot ulcer, a serious complication of diabetes. However, these ulcers can lead to gangrene and amputation.
In the United States, nearly 100,000 diabetic patients are amputated each year. In France it is estimated that 10,000 number of amputations related to complications of diabetic feet, according to the French federation of diabetics.
To prevent the risk, Siren care, an American start-up has designed connected socks which, once put on, take care of the health of the feet. Sensors embedded in the fabric track wearers’ body temperature in real time.
Like any connected health object, the data is linked and sent to an application on the user’s smartphone. The latter is therefore kept informed directly by notifications of the physical condition of his foot. In the event of a small wound related to friction, for example, the sock will launch an alert message so that the person can react and be taken care of by a health professional.
Clinical trials to approve these smart socks
For the moment, the socks are on pre-sale on the start-up’s website while waiting for clinical tests to be carried out with the University of UCSF in San Francisco (United States).
It is therefore possible to test these 2.0 socks by purchasing a pack of 7 at the price of … 120 dollars (approximately 110 euros), a box with a lifespan of 6 months, according to the merchant site. A relatively high cost which will not replace the vigilance of diabetics to limit the risk of injury to the feet. On a daily basis, they are encouraged to take care of their feet by cutting their nails regularly, wearing comfortable socks and shoes (to avoid friction).
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