Foot ulcer is a term that references an open sore that forms on or near one or both of our feet. It may form on the bottom of the foot, the toes, and the top of the foot or even the lower region of the leg mainly caused by diabetic disease [ Gebre 2013].According to research result shows about 15% of diabetic patients develop foot ulcers in their lifetime enhancement [Jeon et al.,2010]. Diabetic foot ulcer is becoming major concern of diabetic patients. People with a diabetic foot ulcer (DFU) have a 40% greater 10-year death rate than people with diabetes alone. Foot ulcer problems with diabetic patients account for up to 15% of healthcare resources in developed countries and 40% in developing countries and one in every six people with diabetes will develop ulcer [Tesfatsion et al., 2013].
Poverty and unhygienic conditions associated with foot ulceration are major factors contributing to development of the diabetic foot in developing countries [Deribe. et al. 2013] like Ethiopia. For diabetic patients living at or below poverty line, the purchase of appropriate footwear (orthopedic footwear) might not be affordable, feasible or of high priority [Woldemichael, 2010]. For diabetic foot ulcer patients and people who are overweight, extra pressure may be the cause of ongoing foot pain/ulcer but by using /wearing orthopedic footwear appliance can be redistribute evenly and the development of ongoing foot pain/ ulceration development retards [Zhang.,et al 2017].
The, knees, and back are just some of the body parts that can be adversely affected by improper posture or gait. Orthotics can amend this by spreading the load uniformly around the feet, and then assure that they hit the ground perpendicularly, that why it is so important that cushion memory foam shoe insert is a need in redistributes our pressure by absorbing shock. Inappropriate footwear and inappropriate insert can have a large share in contributing factor to the development of foot ulceration [Khan, 011]. In the research of diabetic patient’s foot ulcer diagnosis, footwear with cushion shoe insert has been implemented to reduce pressure on the foot of diabetic patients, and then its pain status and its result showed very good progress of pain reduction [Armstrong and Lavery, 2005]
Today Memory foam shoe inserts is available commercially at high cost and its source for foot ulcer purpose is imported from developed Countries at high cost. This leads low access, and unable to be used by the low-income patients due to higher cost and consumption of expensive raw materials for production of PU shoe insert /in sock. Hence replacement of castor oil surfactant and tap water in the place of silicon surfactant and distilled water respectively is an optional cost effective way of (PU) Memory in sock production.
Polymer elastomers and foams are mostly used to fit the material properties of shoe appliances, like insole and in sock. Mainly ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA), polyurethane (PU) and rubber based materials are mostly used in footwear [Gebrekidan and Gezahagn, 2016]. PU foams and elastomers are demonstrated as the best effective materials for shock absorption in footwear [Saraswathy, 209] while most are effective when new the softer foam materials have a habit of to deteriorate rapidly with use. Different types of foam are available commercially at high cost. But the available materials are not scientifically characterized and optimized for application as in sock for foot ulcer patients treatment. PU viscoelastic cushion in sock will reduce the foot plantar pressure and give additional cushion support to the foot arches.
Therefore, new Polyurethane (PU) memory foams were developed for application as shoe insert in therapeutic footwear for patients with diabetes. The developed materials were characterized for physical and mechanical properties and PU foam composition was also optimized for application as cushion in sock. The purpose of this study was Developing Polyurethane (PU) Memory Foam In sock and the developed materials were characterized for physical and mechanical property and PU foam composition was also optimized for application as cushion in sock