Search Results
Background:
Diabetic foot wounds remain a significant health-care issue. Healing these wounds in a timely manner is of paramount importance because the duration of ulceration correlates with increased rates of infection and amputation, costing billions of dollars yearly. Collagen-based matrices have been used as wound covers and have been shown to improve and expedite healing. We present our experience with equine pericardium biomatrix for the treatment of neuropathic foot wounds.
Methods:
Thirty-four patients with 37 diabetic foot wounds were evaluated at two institutions prospectively. All of the wounds were debrided, and equine pericardium biomatrix was applied. Secondary dressings were changed every 48 to 72 hours until healed or for 12 weeks after application. Healing rate at 12 weeks, time to wound closure, and complications were evaluated.
Results:
Twenty-two men and 12 women (mean age, 56.9 years) were treated and evaluated. Mean and median wound sizes at initial treatment were 715.8 and 440 mm2, respectively. The overall wound healing rate by 12 weeks was 75.7% (n =28). Mean and median times to wound closure were 7.2 and 7.0 weeks, respectively. No device or procedure-related complications were reported.
Conclusions:
The use of equine pericardium as a temporary biological scaffold is safe and effective for the treatment of chronic neuropathic foot wounds. (J Am Podiatr Med Assoc 102(5): 352–358, 2012)
Background:
We sought to develop new recombinant human epidermal growth factor (rhEGF)–containing hydrogels and to investigate their biological activity and therapeutic effects on wound healing in diabetic rats.
Methods:
Levels of rhEGF released from hydrogels were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The cellular proliferating activity of released rhEGF was evaluated by MTT assay. Fifty-six wounded diabetic rats were randomly divided into four groups with different topical treatment daily. The therapeutic effects were evaluated by wound area measurement, histologic analysis, immunohistochemical assessment of proliferating cell nuclear antigen and B-cell lymphoma/leukemia-2, and Western blotting of EGF receptor.
Results:
The rhEGF released from the hydrogel matrix kept its bioactivity on stimulating proliferation of the BALB/c3T3 cell line. Wound closure rates on postoperative day 14 were 75.8% in the negative control group, 82.83% in the group treated with hydrogel matrix, 85.87% in the group treated with rhEGF-containing hydrogel, and 81.18% in the group treated with rhEGF solution. Compared with hydrogel matrix, rhEGF-containing hydrogel had an additional effect on induction of EGF receptor expression (P < .05). Compared with negative controls, protein expression of B-cell lymphoma/leukemia-2 was higher in the rhEGF-containing groups (P < .05). Proliferating cell nuclear antigen was induced at its highest level on day 7 in the rhEGF-containing hydrogel–treated group (P < .05).
Conclusions:
These data from in vitro release and diabetic animal models highlight the efficacy of hydrogels as a controlled releasing system for topical application of EGFs. The rhEGF-containing hydrogel we developed holds the merits of prolonged and sustained releasing of bioactive rhEGF and therapeutic potential in enhancing diabetic wound healing. (J Am Podiatr Med Assoc 102(2): 89–98, 2012)
The use of bioengineered tissue and topical subatmospheric pressure therapy have both been widely accepted as adjunctive therapies for the treatment of noninfected, nonischemic diabetic foot wounds. This article describes a temporally overlapping method of care that includes a period of simultaneous application of bioengineered tissue (Apligraf, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp, East Hanover, New Jersey) and subatmospheric pressure therapy delivered through the VAC (Vacuum Assisted Closure) system (KCI, Inc, San Antonio, Texas). Future descriptive and analytic works may test the hypothesis that combined therapies used at different and often overlapping periods during the wound-healing cycle may be more effective than a single modality. (J Am Podiatr Med Assoc 92(7): 395-397, 2002)
Interprofessionalism
A Cornerstone of Innovation and Medical Education at Scholl College of Podiatric Medicine
In 1912, the Illinois College of Chiropody and Orthopedics was founded, and is today known as the Dr. William M. Scholl College of Podiatric Medicine. It has been an integral part of Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science in North Chicago, Illinois since 2001. Through the ensuing decades, Scholl College alumni have been instrumental in moving the profession forward.
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) is a useful tool for many conditions within the scope of practice of a Doctor of Podiatric Medicine (DPM). More wound-care clinics are adding HBOT as a service line. The increasing prevalence of DPMs operating inside of these wound-care clinics has raised questions about the licensure and privileging of DPMs to supervise HBOT. This document reviews the safety of outpatient HBOT and provides guidelines for hospitals to credential DPMs to supervise treatments.
Dosing Activity and Return to Preulcer Function in Diabetes-Related Foot Ulcer Remission
Patient Recommendations and Guidance from the Limb Preservation Consortium at USC and the Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center
Diabetes-related foot ulcers are a leading cause of global morbidity, mortality, and health-care costs. People with a history of foot ulcers have a diminished quality of life attributed to limited walking and mobility. One of the largest concerns is ulceration recurrence. Approximately 40% of patients with ulcerations will have a recurrent ulcer in the year after healing, and most occur in the first 3 months after wound healing. Hence, this period after ulceration is called “remission” due to this risk of reulceration. Promoting and fostering mobility is an integral part of everyday life and is important for maintaining good physical health and health-related quality of life for all people living with diabetes. In this short perspective, we provide recommendations on how to safely increase walking activity and facilitate appropriate off-loading and monitoring in people with a recently healed foot ulcer, foot reconstruction, or partial foot amputation. Interventions include monitored activity training, dosed out in steadily increasing increments and coupled with daily skin temperature monitoring, which can identify dangerous “hotspots” prone to recurrence. By understanding areas at risk, patients are empowered to maximize ulcer-free days and to enable an improved quality of life. This perspective outlines a unified strategy to treat patients in the remission period after ulceration and aims to provide clinicians with appropriate patient recommendations based on best available evidence and expert opinion to educate their patients to ensure a safe transition to footwear and return to activity.
Background: We assessed the tolerability and efficacy of autologous skin cell grafts in older type 2 diabetic patients with chronic foot ulcers.
Methods: Treatment with Hyalograft 3D and Laserskin Autograft was proposed to a consecutive series of type 2 diabetic patients older than 65 years affected by long-standing (>6 months) foot ulcers with an area greater than 15 cm2. Ulcer healing rates and measurements of ulcer area were determined monthly for 12 months.
Results: Seven patients with 12 ulcers, nine of which received the described treatment, were enrolled. During 12-month follow-up, all of the ulcers healed except one. In the remaining eight ulcers, the median healing time was 21 weeks (interquartile range, 4–29 weeks).
Conclusions: Autologous skin cell grafts are feasible, well tolerated, and apparently effective in the treatment of diabetic ulcers of the lower limbs in advanced age. Age did not seem to moderate healing times. (J Am Podiatr Med Assoc 101(1): 55–58, 2011)
