Wound Care Clinic (WCC)

There are many causes of chronic sores or ulcers.  Some can be serious, but most can be treated and healed once the source of the problem is identified.  Vascular disease of the arteries and veins are the major cause of ulcerations on the lower extremities.  Venous disease causes swelling and poor blood return to the heart.  This distributes higher than normal pressure to the tissue in the ankle areas and causes the skin to break down.  Medicated pressure dressings reduce the swelling, allowing the ulcers to heal over time.

On the other hand, arterial insufficiency in the lower extremities can cause very painful ulcers that may only be improved by having a vascular bypass procedure. This can be determined by performing either an ultrasound study or an arteriogram (x-rays showing the blood vessel pattern in the lower extremities).

Diabetes is another cause of chronic ulceration.  Diabetics are prone not to heal because of blockages in the tiny arterioles (end vessels) caused by their disease.  In addition, normal sensation is not present in the limbs of diabetics and undue pressure is not appreciated by these patients. Therefore, any ulceration is aggravated by these additional factors.  Using new and time tested methods with special dressings and occasionally surgery, most of these wounds can be healed.  These wounds can be serious and if not treated in a timely fashion, limbs can be lost if the disease process in not controlled.

If you've had a wound for a while and it hasn't healed, you need expert help.  Unfortunately, chronic wounds don't usually respond to a single 'magical' product.  It might take a team of dedicated, knowledgeable and experienced healthcare professionals to evaluate you, your wound and then decide on a treatment plan.