作者:Sarah Wartman,医学博士
专业:
血管手术
估计是6.5 million Americans are affected by chronic wounds – wounds that don’t follow the expected pattern of healing and show little or no signs of improvement after a month’s time. More than an inconvenience or eyesore, those affected by non-healing wounds can face chronic pain, loss of mobility, depression and anxiety, as well as increased risk of hospitalization, amputation and death.
The most common types of chronic wounds are ulcers that fall into one of 五类:
Chronic wounds are the result of something interrupting the healing process. Some of the most common causes of non-healing wounds include infection, swelling from fluid buildup, and poor circulation. 每年,美国人 spend over $25 billion in the treatment of 这些伤口 and related complications – and that doesn’t include the treatment of underlying conditions like 糖尿病 外周动脉疾病. Addressing these underlying conditions is important to prevent future wounds and to ensure active wounds do not 成为一个长期问题.
Due to the complexity of wounds and their underlying conditions, a multidisciplinary physician panel is essential to adequately care for and, ultimately, heal 这些伤口.
在 Washington Center for 伤口愈合 and 高比重药物, it’s all hands on deck to treat these 顽固的 wounds. 我们的团队 consists of infectious disease specialists, podiatrists, vascular surgeons, plastic surgeons, general surgeons, internal medicine physicians and wound 专业护士和技术人员. 在中心外面,我们会 often call upon the expertise of other specialists and subspecialists to help a patient manage these underlying conditions. 这些包括 primary care providers, endocrinologists, cardiologists or even 营养师.
Every patient is unique, so it stands to reason that not every wound is 都. As such, we tailor treatments to each patient’s specific 需要. Some of the therapies and approaches that may be employed include:
病人 should be vigilant about getting care if a wound isn’t healing 正如预期的. A patient without any known vascular issues or 糖尿病 can usually wait a few weeks to see if it improves. 然而,如果你有 one of these conditions, it’s important to be proactive and see your doctor even before your wound is considered chronic.
Other ways you can help the healing process include:
To learn more about the life- and quality of life-saving work that we do at the Washington Center for 伤口愈合 and 高比重药物, visit the Washington Hospital website.
2019年7月发布