Musculoskeletal
Negative pressure wound therapy for wound management in patients with diabetes (type 1 and 2)
27 June 2022
Published on 27 Jun 2022
Last Updated on 27 Jun 2022
Guidance Recommendations
The Ministry of Health’s MTAC has recommended subsidy for:
Negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) for wound management in patients with diabetic foot wounds and ulcers after debridement as suggested by a multidisciplinary foot care service team, taking into consideration of clinical assessment of the wound (i.e. depth, size, position and state), patient compliance, and use of devices and dressings appropriate to clinical circumstances.
Where deemed clinically necessary, in addition to using NPWT post-surgical intervention, patients should be offered any of the following as adjunctive therapies e.g. offloading, antimicrobial therapy, and evaluation and management of vascular insufficiency. In special cases, NPWT may be used without prior surgical intervention.
The multidisciplinary foot care service team may include, but is not limited to, podiatrists, orthopaedic surgeons, vascular surgeons, and wound care nurses.
Subsidy status
The use of NPWT is recommended for subsidy for the abovementioned indication(s) only. Single-use NPWT systems (e.g. PICO-NPWT) are not recommended for subsidy in the abovementioned indication(s).