Smart diabetic foot ulcer risk assessment and wound healingmanagement device for chronic care patients:A comprehensive review

Abstract

Diabetic foot ulcer (DFU) is among the most severe chronic complications of diabetes mellitus and represents a major contributor to hospitalization, lower-limb amputation, disability, and healthcare expenditure worldwide. The increasing prevalence of diabetes has significantly raised the burden of chronic wounds, particularly among elderly individuals and patients with longstanding uncontrolled diabetes. Conventional approaches to diabetic foot monitoring primarily rely on periodic clinical examination and subjective wound assessment, which frequently delay early diagnosis and intervention. Consequently, emerging smart healthcare technologies integrating artificial intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), wearable biosensors, thermal imaging, pressure sensing, cloud computing, and telemedicine have transformed diabetic wound management from reactive treatment toward proactive prevention. Recent advances have enabled continuous monitoring of plantar pressure, skin temperature, moisture, tissue oxygenation, gait abnormalities, and wound morphology using portable and wearable smart devices. AI-driven predictive algorithms can identify patients at high risk for ulcer development, estimate wound progression, and recommend individualized treatment strategies. Smart wound dressings further enhance healing by providing controlled drug release, infection monitoring, and real-time physiological sensing