Mobile Application for Ulcer Detection
as listed in Fig. (4). The background thread
protects the main thread from being clogged
up with processing techniques, which helps in
providing a smooth flowing user experience.
3. RESULTS
The result shown to the user is the overall
view of his feet with the help of a BGR image,
as shown in Fig. (7). The blue color on the
screen represents the cold segments on the
image, and the red region represents the hot
segment, which indicates the occurrence of
DFU. The Mean Temperature Difference (MTD)
is provided to the user, which is the difference
between the suspected hottest region and the
feet region. If the MTD is more than 2.2 o C, the
application highlights the BGR image with red
color on the suspected ulcerous region.
Four test images were used to test the
algorithm developed using OpenCV software.
The first image is for a nondiabetic feet patient
with no abnormalities. The other three images
Figure 8: Test Image 1
28
Pedorthic Footcare Association | www.pedorthics.org
are with simulated ulcer on different regions.
The four test images are shown in Figs. (8, 9,
10, and 11) where the mean temperature values
for the feet segments (hot minus hottest)
are 33.2 o C, 36.9 o C, 35.5 o C, and 35.3 o C,
respectively. The suspected hottest region
mean temperature values are 35.0 o C, 39.4
o
C, 38.0 o C, and 37.7 o C, respectively. If an
ulcer occurs, the application automatically
highlights the region with a red color over the
BGR blue feet segment image.
The MTD for the first test image shown in Fig.
(8) is 1.8 o C, while the MTD values for the rest
of images containing a simulated ulcer region
are 2.5 o C, 2.5 o C, and 2.4 o C, respectively.
Table 1 depicts the observed values for the four
test images.
4. DISCUSSION
The proposed mobile thermal imaging system
represents a new promising approach to
detect possible ulcers in the diabetic patients’
Figure 9: Test Image 2