ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Endocrinol.
Sec. Clinical Diabetes
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fendo.2025.1580193
Association between glycated hemoglobin and biomechanical properties of the skin with type 2 diabetes by using an electromechanical skin device
Provisionally accepted
- 1First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
- 2The First People's Hospital of Longwan District, Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
- 3Pingyang County People's Hospital, Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
- 4Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, China
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Objective This study aimed to evaluate the association between glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels and biomechanical properties of the human skin with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients using an electro-mechanical skin device. Methods A cross-sectional study enrolled 136 T2DM patients and 190 healthy controls. Biomechanical properties of the skin were measured with an electro-mechanical skin device（Khelometer®）at different skin sites (forearm, pretibial, and instep regions). The parameters, including F (Maximum rebound force), M (retention rate of rebound force), R (rise response rate) and H (rebound force hysteresis) by Khelometer®, represent biomechanical properties of the human skin. Results T2DM patients showed significantly higher F values and lower M, R, and H values compared to healthy controls. HbA1c levels were positively associated with F values and negatively associated with M, R, and H values across different skin sites. Participants with higher F values had significantly higher HbA1c levels. Restricted cubic spline analysis revealed strong nonlinear associations between HbA1c and skin biomechanical properties. Conclusions The data indicate the electro-mechanical skin device is useful to quantitate the biomechanical properties of the skin. Furthermore, this study demonstrates a nonlinear relationship between HbA1c levels and the biomechanical properties of the skin. These findings add to the evidence to support the impact of elevated HbA1c on biomechanical properties in individuals with T2DM.
Keywords: Glycated hemoglobin, type 2 diabetes mellitus, Electro-mechanical skin device, Skin, Skin biomechanical properties
Received: 20 Feb 2025; Accepted: 12 Aug 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Chen, Zhou, Chen, Deng, Zhou, Pan, Chen and Gong. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Xiaohua Gong, First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China
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