01/08/2026
A wound can look healed—and still be vulnerable.
In a large NIH Diabetic Foot Consortium study published in Diabetes Care, “closed” diabetic foot ulcers with high transepidermal water loss (TEWL) were far more likely to reopen. Elevated TEWL signaled defective skin barrier function—despite an intact surface.
Healing isn’t just closure.
Barrier function matters.
📖 Sen CK et al., Diabetes Care, 2025
ClinicalEducation DiabetesCare