The Foot Ulcer Microbiome in Diabetes (FUMID)
Research type
Research Study
Full title
The Foot Ulcer Microbiome in Diabetes (FUMID)
IRAS ID
137934
Contact name
William Jeffcoate
Contact email
Research summary
Current approaches to examining bacteria living on the surface of a wound are dependent on managing to grow the organisms in the laboratory. The information available from this approach is severely limited as some organisms are difficult to grow and others may die on the way to the lab. It is also well recognised that surface swabbing of the wound provides little useful information while even deep sampling of cleaned soft tissue can give misleading results of which, if any, organisms are causing infection or preventing wounds to heal.
However, modern molecular microbiological techniques are now available which use bacterial DNA and RNA to identify the species of bacteria that are present even if the bacteria are dead when they arrive in the lab. Using these techniques to identify bacteria on the surface of chronic wounds by using a simple surface swab, we propose to look at up to 100 chronic ulcers of the heel in diabetes to determine which bacteria are present and start to seek associations between particular organisms and clinical outcome (healing and infection). Associations will also be sought with the results of any organisms identified by conventional microbiological examination of samples taken as part of patients’ usual care.REC name
East Midlands - Derby Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
13/EM/0438
Date of REC Opinion
30 Dec 2013
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion