If you have a chronic wound, your doctor needs to track its size to see if treatment is working. The standard way to measure is precise but can be time-consuming. Researchers wanted to see if a smartphone could do the job just as well.
They tested two apps—one semi-automated (Woundtrack) and one fully automated (Woundsize)—against the standard method in 36 patients with chronic wounds. They found that Woundtrack agreed with the standard method extremely well, even for small wounds. The automated Woundsize app was less consistent, especially on smaller areas.
This is a promising step toward simpler wound tracking. However, it was a small study at a single clinic, and six patients' wounds couldn't be measured by the apps at all. The research only shows the apps can measure size similarly to the standard; it doesn't prove they lead to better healing. More testing in different settings is needed.