Research on the Feet of Men with Diabetes as a Basis for Designing Shoes and Insoles

Abstract

Diabetes is a dangerous chronic disease and often causes foot complications. Foot ulcers are a dangerous complication in patients with diabetes and lead to the risk of amputation. Shoes for diabetic patients play an important role in reducing the risk of foot ulcers. Therefore, diabetic patients need to use their own footwear, designed on the basis of anthropometric research and assessment of their foot complications. The article presents the method and results of measuring the feet and evaluating thier complications of 332 male diabetic patients over the age of 40. The patients' feet were measured at Khoai Chau district medical center, Hung Yen province and at National Hospital of Endocrinology. The results showed that diabetic foot complications in men with diabetes tend to get worse over time of illness. Foot complications/pathologies are the cause of differences in measurements of height, width and circumference of male diabetic foot. This difference was independent of the patient's age. According to foot complications, about 97.2% of male patients need to use “Extra Depth Diabetic Shoes”; 21.8% of patients required “Custom Molded Inlays/insoles”; and 3.2% of patients required “Custom Molded Diabetic Shoes” and “Custom Molded Inlays”.