Australia has developed "smart" glasses to diagnose diabetic foot
Australia has developed "smart" mixed reality glasses with holographic functions. They are expected to revolutionize the treatment of foot wounds for people with diabetes and vascular disease in hard-to-reach and remote areas and reduce the number of lower limb amputations.Researchers at the University of Adelaide (Australia) have developed "smart" mixed-reality glasses with holographic features that allow an urban physician conducting a telemedicine consultation to "see" a patient with foot wounds through the eyes of a rural medic. This should improve diagnosis in hard-to-reach and remote areas and lead to early treatment of diabetic foot, ultimately leading to fewer amputations, according to the university's website.
The device helps the rural physician see patients with foot wounds using telemedicine, with his or her hands free and able to treat a wound or change a dressing at the same time.
"Our glasses are designed to reduce emergency hospitalizations for patients in hard-to-reach and remote areas," says Neil McMillan, one of the authors of the project and a researcher at the Adelaide School of Medicine.
There is a growing need for this type of technology, he says, as rates of diabetes and cardiovascular disease continue to rise. Limited access to out-of-town health care leads to delayed screening and late-stage detection, making treatment more costly and difficult. In 2019/2020, diabetic foot caused approximately 1,700 deaths and more than 5,000 lower limb amputations in Australia.
Amputation rates are 10 times higher in regions outside metropolitan areas and are a particular problem for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, who are 38 times more likely to undergo diabetes-related amputations than non-indigenous Australians.
The smart glasses are expected to be introduced into clinical practice within the next five years, and early versions of the technology will be tested in select locations throughout South Australia as early as 2024, including clinics in Riverland.