be nasty and go on and on and ON! Actually it sounds as if Alan's doing pretty good all things considered. I have a friend whose boyfriend had bad ulcers from diabetic PN on his feet and spent about 4 weeks in a hospital then another 6 weeks recovering at home!
Think about it-Alan has a big HOLE in his foot, while the opening to the hole is much smaller, the damaged tissues underneath are probably lots bigger, Debridement is a practical and sensible approach to helping get rid of tissue healing poorly on the sole and encouraging good healing of good tissues.
The germs feet get simply LOVE what's called an 'anerobic' environment [meaning little air and dark and damp] the kind of places feet live in. Cleaning the feet and being sure they are dry and can get air [as with this orthotic] really is the best way to go.
Why cover it up with a salve and encourage bad stuff to happen?
Hugs! - j