Antimicrobial photodynamic therapy in the treatment of foot ulcers in people with diabetes mellitus: a randomised controlled trial protocol

Significance Diabetic foot ulcers are a major complication of diabetes and a significant public health issue, greatly impacting healthcare costs.These ulcers are commonly treated with conventional methods such as saline cleaning, debridement, antibiotics, and topical dressings.However, the rise in non-traumatic lower limb amputations related to diabetes, along with growing antimicrobial resistance, highlights the insufficiency of these standard treatments in achieving timely healing.Recent advances New light source adjuvant therapies, such as antimicrobial photodynamic therapy, are being tested to aid the healing of foot ulcers.This therapy involves using light (LASER or LED) to irradiate the lesion in combination with a photosensitising agent and tissue oxygen.This process promotes oxidative stress and reduces the microorganisms present in the ulcer.Critical issues A significant challenge in applying photodynamic therapy is the lack of comprehensive clinical studies and complete treatment protocols.Although there is growing evidence supporting this therapy's effectiveness in various conditions, the scarcity of well-documented clinical trials, and reliable replication of these studies, represents a major obstacle for other researchers seeking to replicate the results. Future directionsThis article provides a detailed and transparent protocol, which can be easily reproduced by other researchers, making significant step towards consolidating and expanding the use of photodynamic therapy in the treatment of diabetic ulcers.It is hoped that this study and the presented protocol will serve as a foundation for future research and innovations in photodynamic therapy, opening up new therapeutic possibilities and contributing to improving quality of clinical practice.