Review of diabetic foot complication assessment tools developed from 2007 to 2016

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to analyze the attributes and psychometric properties of newly developed diabetic foot complication assessment tools. The attributes of diabetic foot complication assessment tools were evaluated using a systematic review. Methods: The search terms: "diabetes mellitus" and "foot ulcer" were retrieved using Boolean operators of "and", "or", and "not". The search was limited to articles published between 2007 and 2016. The literature was analyzed by division of methodological characteristics, instrumental characteristics, and item and stratified outcome characteristics. Results: Six assessment tools were found for diabetic foot complications. Only three of the six tools presented the evidence in terms of validity and reliability. In all six tools, "ulcer" was the measured item with the highest frequency, but the contents of items varied. The six identified tools focused on assessing current physical symptoms, but not on predicting diabetic foot complications. Conclusion: Preventive foot self-care should be used to predict diabetic foot complications before symptoms appear. Moreover, the reliability and validity of existing tools should be verified in terms of discrimination, prediction, and evaluation.