Our goals are: the further development of our lab-on-fiber technologies to improve their sensitivity, specificity, and robustness; the incorporation of time and spatial resolved detection of the relevant metabolites; and the validation of the technologies in clinical settings.
Chronic wounds such as venous and diabetic foot ulcers affect 1-2 % of the population and represent 2-4 % of healthcare expenses; simultaneously, major acute injuries, as caused by blunt, penetrating trauma and burns, represent the most common causes of death and disability in the developed world, with approximately 900 million people suffering worldwide from acute injuries requiring specialized healthcare. Management of chronic and acute wound remains challenging: available methods based on visual signs and symptoms provide limited accuracy and strongly rely on the practitioner’s experience; moreover wound care technologies lack sufficient evidence of their impact to objectively support their utilization.
