David G. Armstrong, DPM, MD, PhD

A Personal Sensing Mobility Intervention to Improve Health and Reduce Disparities in Vulnerable and Underserved Populations
Summary
Armstrong, a professor of surgery and neurological surgery at Keck School of Medicine of USC, will lead a project that aims to improve treatment for diabetic foot ulcers (DFU) using special smart boots that relieve pressure from specific areas of the foot. DFUs affect 15% of patients with diabetes — more than 1 million people annually — and if inadequately treated, can lead to amputation. Individuals from racial and ethnic minority groups are more likely to develop DFUs, receive amputations, and experience complications, leading to a lower survival rate.
While pressure offloading boots are considered the gold standard of care for DFU, patients struggle with using them because of discomfort, aesthetics, and mobility restrictions. Armstrong’s team seeks to improve patient outcomes with a new smart boot design that allows for remote monitoring of patient activity and adherence to the treatment.
This grant from the PhRMA Foundation empowers us to enhance our smart offloading boots, tailoring them to fit the unique cultural and behavioral aspects of minority populations who are most at risk for hospitalization and amputation. Our project is a step forward in making state-of-the-art health care accessible and equitable for all, particularly those in underserved communities.