"Old leg ulcers", how much trouble do you have? Take care of your legs and worry less! - Let us help you understand venous leg ulcers

Author: Guo Minghua, Wang Lei, Wang Huan, Peking Union Medical College Hospital

Reviewer: Song Xiaojun, deputy chief physician, Peking Union Medical College Hospital

60-year-old Grandma Wang came to the vascular surgery clinic with a worried look on her face: "Doctor, I have a small wound on my leg. At first, it just protruded like a small earthworm. Sometimes it hurts, it itches, and it swells. I have scratched it many times. It has been like this for more than 9 months. What is going on?" After examining Grandma Wang, the doctor found that she had a venous ulcer of the lower limb. Ulcers? Can veins ulcerate? Yes, today we will take you to learn more about this somewhat annoying disease.

Venous ulcers of the lower limbs, commonly known as "old rotten legs", are caused by varicose veins or superficial phlebitis in the lower limbs, which lead to swelling, soreness, pain, and itching in the lower limbs. Over time, the skin will become darker, dermatitis, eczema, and even ulcers will occur.

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The incidence of venous leg ulcers is very high, with the annual incidence of new cases in China being about 1.5%. Most patients suffer from prolonged illness or recurrent attacks, which is a chronic wound disease that can seriously affect the quality of life. Although venous leg ulcers are an annoying disease, they can be cured and prevented if they receive timely treatment and care.

When you have a venous ulcer in your lower extremities, do not apply ointment carelessly, scratch or scratch the wound, or think that the wound is small and can be allowed to develop without treatment. This can easily miss the best time for wound healing. Usually, you need to go to the hospital's wound treatment center in time for treatment. Professional wound therapists will perform detailed wound treatment, including wound assessment, wound treatment, and anti-infection treatment. Of course, the doctor will also use color Doppler ultrasound of the lower extremity veins to determine the extent of varicose veins in the lower extremities to determine whether the varicose veins need to be surgically treated first. Through arterial color Doppler ultrasound, it can also be determined whether the patient has lower extremity arterial ischemia, thereby preparing for pressure treatment.

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Pressure therapy is the most basic treatment for venous leg ulcers. It can effectively prevent lower limb swelling, promote venous blood return, and increase the probability of wound healing. It is therefore known as the "gold standard" for conservative treatment of venous leg ulcers. Commonly used pressure therapy includes elastic bandages, elastic stockings, and pneumatic compression therapy. To ensure the efficacy, pressure therapy with elastic bandages needs to be performed under the guidance of a professional wound therapist.

After treatment, if the wound has healed, in order to prevent the recurrence of venous ulcers, easy-to-wear compression stockings can be used to prevent the wound from rupturing again. There are two points to pay attention to when choosing compression stockings. The first is to measure correctly and choose the right type of stockings. The second is to wear the stockings correctly.

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In home care, you should pay attention to the maintenance of the skin of the lower limbs. Here are 4 tips for you: ① Apply moisturizing oil to prevent skin desquamation; ② If you have skin eczema, avoid scratching the eczema area, otherwise it is easy to cause skin ulceration. If ulceration occurs, you should seek medical attention in time; ③ Avoid standing or sitting for a long time, otherwise it is easy to cause swelling of the lower limbs; ④ When resting, you can raise both lower limbs to reduce swelling of the lower limbs.

To love yourself, please start by taking care of your legs. Only in this way can you get rid of the troubles brought by "old and rotten legs" and truly stretch your legs and enjoy a wonderful life!