Delayed healing in diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) remains a major contributor to prolonged hospitalization and amputation risk. A prospective comparative study published in Cureus evaluated whether topical insulin dressings are associated with improved wound healing outcomes compared with conventional normal saline dressings in patients with DFUs.

The study included 94 patients with Wagner grade 1 and 2 DFUs treated at a tertiary care center. Participants were allocated to treatment groups based on routine clinical practice, with one group receiving topical insulin dressings and the other receiving saline dressings. Weekly wound assessments evaluated granulation tissue formation, wound surface area, discharge, percentage wound reduction, duration of hospital stay, and time to complete ulcer closure.

The insulin dressing group demonstrated greater granulation tissue formation from week 1 onward. Mean wound reduction was higher compared with the saline group (48.44 ± 5.76% vs 19.15 ± 4.34%). Persistent wound discharge was observed in the saline group but not in the insulin group during early follow-up. Hospital stay (14.89 ± 1.90 vs 19.21 ± 2.17 days) and time to ulcer closure (33.4 ± 3.7 vs 52.8 ± 5.2 days) were shorter in the insulin group. No hypoglycemia or systemic adverse effects were reported.

These findings indicate that topical insulin dressing is associated with improved healing outcomes in DFUs, although the nonrandomized design limits causal interpretation.