Shockwave Device for People Struggling with Diabetic Foot Ulcers

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the first shockwave device indicated for patients with #diabeticfoot ulcers. Marketed as the Dermapace System, the device uses a handheld probe to deliver high-energy pulses similar to sound waves to the wound’s surface.

According to the manufacturer, Sanuwave Health Inc, of Alpharetta, Georgia, the device increases perfusion and arteriogenesis, angiogenesis, biofilm disruption, and growth factor upregulation, which help regenerate skin and musculoskeletal and vascular structures.

Treatment consists of 4 to 8 brief, noninvasive applications given over 2 to 10 weeks. Monitoring and usual care are required afterward. The device is indicated for adults with diabetes who have foot ulcers lasting more than 30 days. The FDA noted that about 25% of people with diabetes will develop a foot ulcer. Poor circulation or a foot infection that doesn’t respond to treatment sometimes results in amputation.