1/393. hydroxyurea-related leg ulcers in a patient with chronic myelogenous leukemia: a case report and review of the literature.The unusual appearance of extensive skin ulcerations has been reported in patients with chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) undergoing continuous chemotherapy with hydroxyurea. It is thought that hydroxyurea, an antineoplastic agent with selective cytotoxicity for cells that divide most actively (such as those of the skin), causes these ulcerations through impairment of normal wound healing in areas of common trauma. The most common site of ulcers is the leg, where the ulcers are often extremely painful, with violaceous macules surrounding them, and are associated with extensive edema. On biopsy, histological vascular changes include leukocytoclastic vasculitis, perivascular lymphocytic infiltration, formation of thrombus, swelling of the endothelial cells, and thickening of the vascular walls. We report successful split-thickness skin grafting on hydroxyurea-related leg ulcers after preoperative discontinuation of hydroxyurea treatment in a patient with CML. The possible pathogenesis of hydroxyurea-related leg ulcers is discussed.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = ulcer (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/393. Leg ulcers: a common problem with sometimes uncommon etiologies.In the U.S., leg ulcers present a significant clinical problem, occurring at a rate of approximately 600,000 new cases per year. In most cases, the cause of ulceration is venous or arterial in nature. One uncommon but significant cause of leg ulcers is sqaumous cell carcinoma (SCC). Although the incidence of SCC is higher in white than black populations, blacks with SCC typically exhibit involvement of areas of the skin that are not chronically sun-exposed, especially the lower extremeties. Predisposing factors include burn scars, chronic infection or ulceration, and chronic discoid lupus erythematosus. Leg ulcers of atypical presentation or those that fail to heal should alert the clinician to consider uncommon etiologies.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.9keywords = ulcer (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/393. New approaches in the therapy of the peripheral vascular ulcer.It can readily be seen that Debrisan represents a more effective mode of therapy for several groups of patients which tend to have chronic disabling ulcers of limbs of various etiologies, including venous stasis ulcers, chronic sickle-cell ulcers, decubiti, etc. The more effective treatment of this patient populations, which is provided by Debrisan, would provide a very significant decrease in the total cost of health care in the united states, approximating half a billion dollars per year.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.7keywords = ulcer (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/393. hidradenitis suppurativa occurring on the leg.The case of a patient with a recurrent, painful ulceration on the lower leg, clinically and histologically resembling hidradenitis suppurativa, is presented. The fact that this site is devoid of apocrine glands supports the concept that apocrine involvement in hidradenitis suppurativa is coincidental and that these glands are involved secondarily. It is suggested that in this patient the pathogenesis of the disease is follicular occlusion rather than selective apocrine poral closure.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.1keywords = ulcer (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/393. dermatomyositis-like eruption and leg ulceration caused by hydroxyurea in a patient with psoriasis.We report the case of an elderly woman who had been on hydroxyurea for long-standing widespread psoriasis. After approximately 5 years's treatment with hydroxyurea, she developed a symmetrical dermatomyositis-like eruption on her hands, together with bilateral leg ulceration. Although similar skin eruptions have been reported after long-term hydroxyurea treatment, all of the previous patients were being treated for myeloproliferative disorders. A dermatomyositis-like eruption has not previously been reported to occur as a consequence of hydroxyurea treatment for psoriasis. Its recognition is important to prevent unnecessary investigation or treatment withdrawal.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.5keywords = ulcer (Clic here for more details about this article) |
6/393. Healing of chronic leg ulcers in diabetic necrobiosis lipoidica with local granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor treatment.Two young insulin-dependent diabetic patients suffering from chronic nonhealing leg ulcers of necrobiosis lipoidica diabeticorum were treated by applying topically recombinant human granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) on the ulcer repetitively during 10 weeks. Evaluation of ulcer size was assessed with clinical examinations at 1-week or 2-week intervals. Topical GM-CSF healed the ulcers of both patients in 10 weeks. Decrease in the size of the ulcers was already evident after the first topical applications. During follow-up, the ulcers have remained healed for more than 3 years. This excellent treatment result suggests that topically applied GM-CSF may be a valuable drug for chronic, nonhealing ulcers in patients with diabetes.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1.1keywords = ulcer (Clic here for more details about this article) |
7/393. hydroxyurea-induced leg ulcers: is macroerythrocytosis a pathogenic factor?hydroxyurea is a common cancer chemotherapy agent that inhibits ribonucleotide reductase, an enzyme essential to dna synthesis. It is considered the drug of choice in the treatment of chronic myelogenous leukemia and essential thrombocythemia. The occurrence of leg ulcers have been described in 8.5% of patients receiving continuous treatment with hydroxyurea, but the cause of this complication is unknown. We report two additional patients and suggest that macroerythrocytosis, which occurs in almost all the patients taking hydroxyurea, may be a pathogenic factor. Macroerythrocytosis can be considered as an 'acquired' blood dyscrasia, and similar leg ulcers have long been known to occur with certain hereditary blood dyscrasias, such as sickle cell anemia, thalasemia, and spherocytosis.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.6keywords = ulcer (Clic here for more details about this article) |
8/393. Primary cutaneous mucormycosis: a diagnosis to consider.Primary cutaneous mucormycosis is a deep fungal infection, mainly seen in diabetics and immunocompromised subjects. Rapid diagnosis and therapy are necessary to avoid fatal outcome. We describe the complete histopathological and microbiological studies of primary cutaneous mucormycosis in a 74-year-old man with several risk factors, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, respiratory acidosis, hemolytic anemia, myelodysplastic syndrome and iatrogenic diabetes, due to corticosteroid therapy. He developed two cutaneous necrotic scars on his left leg. mucormycosis was suspected and specimens from surgical debridement were histopathologically and microbiologically studied confirming the clinical diagnosis. amphotericin b was given topically and intravenously resulting in complete healing of the ulcer. risk factors and microbiological studies are compared with those in the current literature. It is necessary in certain cases to suspect mucormycosis infections in diabetics, immunocompromised subjects and even in healthy individuals. Rapid diagnosis and treatment are important, but they should be based on complete histopathological and microbiological studies, to establish the genus of the causal agent.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.1keywords = ulcer (Clic here for more details about this article) |
9/393. Maggot therapy for the treatment of intractable wounds.BACKGROUND: Fly maggots have been known for centuries to help debride and heal wounds. Maggot therapy was first introduced in the USA in 1931 and was routinely used there until the mid-1940s in over 300 hospitals. With the advent of antimicrobiols, maggot therapy became rare until the early 1990s, when it was re-introduced in the USA, UK, and israel. The objective of this study was to assess the efficacy of maggot therapy for the treatment of intractable, chronic wounds and ulcers in long-term hospitalized patients in israel. methods: Twenty-five patients, suffering mostly from chronic leg ulcers and pressure sores in the lower sacral area, were treated in an open study using maggots of the green bottle fly, Phaenicia sericata. The wounds had been present for 1-90 months before maggot therapy was applied. Thirty-five wounds were located on the foot or calf of the patients, one on the thumb, while the pressure sores were on the lower back. Sterile maggots (50-1000) were administered to the wound two to five times weekly and replaced every 1-2 days. Hospitalized patients were treated in five departments of the Hadassah Hospital, two geriatric hospitals, and one outpatient clinic in Jerusalem. The underlying diseases or the causes of the development of wounds were venous stasis (12), paraplegia (5), hemiplegia (2), Birger's disease (1), lymphostasis (1), thalassemia (1), polycythemia (1), dementia (1), and basal cell carcinoma (1). Subjects were examined daily or every second day until complete debridement of the wound was noted. RESULTS: Complete debridement was achieved in 38 wounds (88.4%); in three wounds (7%), the debridement was significant, in one (2.3%) partial, and one wound (2.3%) remained unchanged. In five patients who were referred for amputation of the leg, the extremities was salvaged after maggot therapy. CONCLUSIONS: Maggot therapy is a relatively rapid and effective treatment, particularly in large necrotic wounds requiring debridement and resistant to conventional treatment and conservative surgical intervention.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.2keywords = ulcer (Clic here for more details about this article) |
10/393. Frozen allogeneic human epidermal cultured sheets for the cure of complicated leg ulcers.BACKGROUND: skin ulcers due to venous stasis or diabetes are common among the elderly and are difficult to treat. Repeated applications of cell-based products have been reported to result in cure or improvement of leg ulcers of small size in a fraction of patients. OBJECTIVE: To examine the effects of frozen human allogeneic epidermal cultures for the treatment of acute and chronic ulcers. methods: We treated a series of 10 consecutive patients with leg ulcers of different etiology and duration with frozen human allogeneic epidermal cultures stored frozen and thawed for 5-10 minutes at room temperature before application. Three patients had ulcers with exposed Achilles or extensor tendon. The ulcers treated were as large as 160 cm2 in area and of up to 20-years' duration. After preliminary preparation of the wounds by debridement to remove necrotic tissue and application of silver sulfadiazine to control infection, thawed cultures were applied biweekly from 2 to 15 times depending on the size and complexity of the ulcer. RESULTS: All ulcers healed, including those with tendon exposure. After the first few applications, granulation tissue formed in the ulcer bed and on exposed tendons, and epidermal healing took place through proliferation and migration of cells from the margins of the wound. The time required for complete healing ranged from 1 to 31 weeks after the first application. CONCLUSION: The use of frozen human allogeneic epidermal cultures is a safe and effective treatment for venous or diabetic ulcers, even those with tendon exposure. It seems possible that any leg ulcer will be amenable to successful treatment by this method.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1.5keywords = ulcer (Clic here for more details about this article) |
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