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Supplemental material, Supplementary_Files for Within- and Between-Body-Site Agreement of Skin Autofluorescence Measurements in People With and Without Diabetes-Related Foot Disease by Malindu E. Fernando, Robert G. Crowther, Peter A. Lazzarini, Kunwarjit S. Sangla, Scott Wearing, Petra Buttner and Jonathan Golledge in Journal of Diabetes Science and Technology

Additional results and Supplementary Tables 1 to 8 for main results (before correction and adjustment) and after correction and adjustment and results of additional analyses. (DOCX 58Â kb)

Objectives: Achilles tendon rupture is a challenging condition. Re-rupture and long-term deficits, such as impaired muscle strength and tendon elongation, often occur.1 Little is known about the recovery of mechanical properties in the Achilles tendon post-repair. This prospective study used a novel,[for full text, please go to the a.m. URL], Deutscher Kongress für Orthopädie und Unfallchirurgie (DKOU 2017)

Background Abnormalities in gait have been associated with high plantar pressures and diabetes-related plantar foot ulcers. Whether these are a transient response to the ulcer or are representative of long-term lower limb biomechanical abnormalities is currently unknown. Objective The aim of this study was to examine whether 12 gait parameters identified as being associated with nonhealing diabetes-related plantar foot ulcers at baseline remained associated during a 6-month follow-up period. Design This was a longitudinal observational case-control study. Methods Gait assessments were performed at entry and twice during follow-up over a 6-month period in 12 participants with nonhealing diabetes-related plantar foot ulcers (case participants) and 62 people with diabetes and no history of foot ulcers (control participants) using a standardized protocol. Linear mixed-effects random-intercept models were used to identify gait parameters that consistently differed between case participants and control participants at all assessments after adjustment for age, sex, body mass index, presence of peripheral neuropathy, and follow-up time. Standardized mean differences (SMD) were used to measure effect sizes. Results Five of the 12 gait parameters were significantly different between case participants and control participants at all 3 time points. Case participants had a more abducted foot progression angle (SMD = 0.37), a higher pelvic obliquity at toe-off (SMD = −0.46), a greater minimum pelvic obliquity (SMD = −0.52), a lower walking speed (SMD = −0.46), and a smaller step length (SMD = −0.46) than control participants. Limitations The limitations included a small sample size, the observational nature of the study, and the inability to evaluate the impact of gait on wound healing. Conclusions This study identified abnormal gait parameters consistently associated with nonhealing diabetes-related plantar foot ulcers. Further research is needed to test the clinical importance of these gait characteristics.

Background: Skin autofluorescence has been used to assess longer term glycemic control and risk of complications. There is however no agreed site at which autofluorescence should be measured. This study evaluated the within- and between-site agreement in measurement of skin autofluorescence using a noninvasive advanced glycation end product (AGE) reader. Methods: Overall, 132 participants were included: 16 with diabetes-related foot ulcers (DFU), 63 with diabetes but without foot ulcers (DMC), 53 without diabetes or foot ulcers (HC). Skin autofluorescence was measured using the AGE Reader (DiagnOptics technologies BV, the Netherlands). Three consecutive skin autofluorescence measurements were each performed at six different body sites: the volar surfaces of both forearms (arms), dorsal surfaces of both calves (legs), and plantar surfaces of both feet (feet). Within- and between-site agreements were analyzed with concordance correlation coefficients (CCC) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI), absolute mean differences (±standard deviation), and Bland-Altman limits of agreement. Results: The agreement between repeat assessments at the same site was almost perfect (CCC [95% CI] ranging from 0.94 [0.91-0.96] for assessments in the right foot to 0.99 [0.99-0.99] for assessments in the left arm). The limits of agreement were narrow within ±0.5 arbitrary units for all sites. The between-site agreement in measurements was poor (CCC < 0.65) with large maximum absolute mean differences (±SD) in arbitrary units (DFU = 3.40 [±2.04]; DMC = 3.15 [±2.45]; HC = 2.72 [±1.83]) and wide limits of agreement. Conclusions: Skin autofluorescence measurements can be repeated at the same site with adequate repeatability but measurements at different sites in the same patient have marked differences. The reason for this variation across sites and whether this has any role in diabetes-related complications needs further investigation.

Background Current international guidelines advocate achieving at least a 30 % reduction in maximum plantar pressure to reduce the risk of foot ulcers in people with diabetes. However, whether plantar pressures differ in cases with foot ulcers to controls without ulcers is not clear. The aim of this study was to assess if plantar pressures were higher in patients with active plantar diabetic foot ulcers (cases) compared to patients with diabetes without a foot ulcer history (diabetes controls) and people without diabetes or a foot ulcer history (healthy controls). Methods Twenty-one cases with diabetic foot ulcers, 69 diabetes controls and 56 healthy controls were recruited for this case-control study. Plantar pressures at ten sites on both feet and stance phase duration were measured using a pre-established protocol. Primary outcomes were mean peak plantar pressure, pressure-time integral and stance phase duration. Non-parametric analyses were used with Holm’s correction to correct for multiple testing. Binary logistic regression models were used to adjust outcomes for age, sex and body mass index. Median differences with 95 % confidence intervals and Cohen’s d values (standardised mean difference) were reported for all significant outcomes. Results The majority of ulcers were located on the plantar surface of the hallux and toes. When adjusted for age, sex and body mass index, the mean peak plantar pressure and pressure-time integral of toes and the mid-foot were significantly higher in cases compared to diabetes and healthy controls (p