Martorell hypertensive ischaemic leg ulcer
The ulcer nobody is talking about……but should
Wound healing refers to a person’s ability to restore tissue that has been compromised. In chronic wounds, there is a significant delay in this restoration process and this delay can be due to various intrinsic (underlying comorbidities) or extrinsic (environment, positioning) factors found in a patient. The first step in the assessment of a clinical wound is to distinguish between chronic and acute wounds; this is easily done by taking a comprehensive history during consultation. A comprehensive medical history will include:
• current wound history (onset, causal factors, pain, size, drainage, current wound care),
• prior wound history (similar wounds in the past, how long did they take to heal),
• medical history (comorbidities such as hypertension, diabetes, kidney disease, nerve involvement),
• social history (cigarette smoking, alcohol use, nutritional status, obesity, age), and
• surgical history (previous wounds with delayed healing, surgery to manage non-healing, grafting, ablation of veins, vascular surgery).
Writing an abstract for a scientific conference
The purpose of presenting a paper (poster or oral format) at a scientific conference is to share research data with a target audience. Dissemination of research is of importance to improve evidence-based practice but also to elicit discussions among peers and stimulate growth within the profession. A conference is a good platform to receive feedback on the presented research and to network or even create collaborations with peers and experts in the field of study. Researchers are expected to submit an abstract to the conference organisers months in advance of the conference. The abstracts then go through a selection process to be accepted or rejected.
Comparative study of two antimicrobial dressings in infected leg ulcers: a pilot study
Skin grafting failure due to infection was proposed in 1951 by Jackson.1 In 1967 Krizek et al. published data showing that on average 94% of grafts survived when ≤ 105 CFU/g were present in the tissue biopsies, whereas 19% survived when count exceeded 105 CFU/g.2 Another study3 demonstrated the presence of Pseudomona aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus results in a significant probability of the skin graft failing to take. These finding were supported by Hogsberg et al.,4 who concluded that a successful skin graft ‘take’ is less likely to occur with wounds containing more than 105 viable bacteria per gram of tissue.
Advanced wound management of squamous cell carcinoma and systemic lupus erythematosus: Case report
Normal wound healing is a complex event occurring over four over lapping stages, namely haemostasis, inflammation, proliferation and maturation, to achieve complete wound closure. However, the relationship between rare autoimmune diseases and the effect there of on delayed wound healing is under-recognised. Autoimmune diseases activate chronic inflammation that contributes to delayed wound healing and the development of various types of cancer such as squamous cell carcinoma (SCC).
Treating wounds with AmnioRederm™: Case series
Chronic, non-healing or stagnant wounds represent a huge socioeconomic burden not only to the patient, but the community as well. In the United States and the UK, the cost of treating these ulcers amounts to 1–2% of the total annual expenditure on health care. These wounds have extended healing trajectories and could take up to six months to heal. Chronic wounds often require advanced interdisciplinary management for a successful outcome and even then, there will be about 2% of wounds that will never heal.
Management of complex infected postoperative Caesarean section wound with negative pressure wound therapy with instillation (NPWTi): a multidisciplinary team approach
A 37-year-old female underwent a Caesarean section for a twin pregnancy. She had no comorbidities and her previous pregnancy, which was also via Caesarean section, was uncomplicated. One week after the Caesarian section the patient developed what she described as a “pimple”, surrounded by skin erythema. The skin lesion subsequently ruptured and started producing a sero-purulent exudate. The wound was treated with local irrigations and conventional dressings which included the use of feeding tube irrigations and silver-based dressings with an absorbent dressing as a secondary dressing.
Attempts allowed: 2
70% Pass rate