Understanding compression for venous leg ulcers

What is the effect of larval therapy on the debridement of venous leg ulcers? A systematic review

AIM

To determine the impact of larval therapy on the debridement of venous leg ulcers, in comparison to other debridement methods or no debridement.

METHOD

Using systematic review methodology, published quantitative studies focusing on the effect of larval therapy on the debridement of venous leg ulcers were included. The search was conducted in January 2020 and updated in May 2021 using CINAHL, PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane library, and returned 357 records, of which six studies met the inclusion criteria. Data were extracted using a predesigned extraction tool and all studies were quality appraised using the RevMan risk of bias assessment tool.

RESULTS

Larval therapy was found to debride at a faster rate than hydrogel (p = 0.011, p < 0.001, p = 0.0039), have a similar effect to sharp debridement (p = 0.12, p = 0.62), and was a resource-effective method of debridement (p < 0.05, p < 0.001, p < 0.001). When larval therapy in combination with compression therapy was compared to compression alone, larvae had a greater effect on debridement (p < 0.05), however, it did not improve overall wound healing rates (p = 0.54, p = 0.664, p = 0.02). Pain levels increased during larval therapy and reduced after treatment, when compared to other standard debridement techniques.

CONCLUSION

Larval therapy promotes rapid debridement of venous leg ulcers. However, further high quality randomised controlled trials, comparing larval therapy to other debridement methods for venous leg ulcers, incorporating the use of compression is required to determine the long term effects of larval therapy.

Development of an accurate nursing program based on function in chronic venous leg ulcers: protocol for matching function status with nursing interventions using the Delphi survey

Objective

Venous leg ulceration (VLU) is one of the complications of lower extremity venous reflux and reflux disorder of severe diseases, with many adverse effects on patient’s work and life. Nowadays, more and more patients with VLU accept wound care in community setting. Clinical nurses generally take care of the patients based on their own experiences. Healing in VLU is an incredibly complex process, which puzzles even experts. The majority of general nurses do not have this level of expertise, especially those nurses serving in community. Function is the basis of nursing activities. Patients always show different clinical manifestations and self-care abilities due to various function states, which cannot be reflected completely by the existing nursing practice. How to describe nursing practice standardized in order to demonstrate the effectiveness of interventions and facilitate interdisciplinary communication is another urgent problem. Therefore, the aim of this project is to develop an accurate nursing program based on function in chronic venous leg ulcers, which can both satisfy the needs of patients and promote nursing revolution.

Methods

This study will use International Classification of Functioning Disability and Health as a framework to choose suitable functions and to filter function classification standards of chronic venous leg ulcers through evidence-based systematic research. Nursing interventions related to VLU are selected based on Nursing Interventions Classification, adding other nursing activities by methods of evidence-based systematic review and clinical observation. Then, nursing interventions and function status are matched through steering committee. Finally, the Delphi survey method is adopted to make nursing program native and scientific.

Conclusions

This study is expected to be very significant and meaningful in using standardized nursing terminology. The nursing program established could better meet the needs of both patients with chronic venous leg ulcers and clinical nurses, promoting the development of wound specialist and standardized nursing language.

Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice in the Management of Mixed Arteriovenous Leg Ulcers

Leg ulceration is a chronic health condition that constitutes a significant disease burden. In this cross-sectional descriptive study, a sample of wound care clinicians were asked to respond to a web-based survey. Based on a review of literature and recommended best practices in the management of mixed arteriovenous (AV) ulcers, a questionnaire was developed to examine the knowledge, attitude, and practice pattern in the management of AV ulcers. A total of 436 clinicians participated in the survey. A number of assessment techniques were perceived to be relevant for the assessment of AV ulcers; medical history and the appearance of ulcers were the most commonly used methods in clinical practice. While over 80% of the participants conceded that compression should be used to promote wound healing, half of them would consider using compression for AV ulcers if ankle brachial index was less than 0.8. Half of the participants considered an ankle brachial index of 0.8 or higher as the optimal cutoff value for safe compression. The majority of respondents disagreed with the perception that caring for people with AV ulcers was unrewarding. However, challenges to promote treatment adherence, address psychosocial concerns, and optimize symptom management are common.