Computation of Wound Healing Score for Patients with Diabetic Foot Ulcer

Abstract: Diabetic Foot Ulcer (DFU) is a serious health issue for a patient with diabetes. The death risk is greater for a patient suffering from Diabetic Foot ulcer when compared with a patient without the history of Diabetic Foot ulcer. Normally the healing status of the wound is determined based on the visual examination done by the clinicians. The conclusions made about the wound and its healing status by this procedure is not accurate. A simple methodology for the assessment of the wound and its healing status is proposed. Here the foot images of the patients are taken on regular basis and these images are analyzed using various image processing tools. The foot image is filtered, preprocessed and then the wound and foot regions are determined. After this the color tracing of the wound is performed. Finally, the healing score is determined by comparing the two foot images taken on regular time intervals.

Keywords: Diabetic Foot Ulcer, Wound Tracing, Color Tracing, Healing Score.