Chronic Wounds Treatment

There are 4 stages of wound healing. Hemostasis, inflammatory, proliferative and maturation. For wounds to heal they must go through all 4 stages. Chronic wounds are wounds that are stuck in one stage of wound healing, which is usually the inflammatory phase. There are a number of reasons why a wound may get stuck in this stage of healing including but not limited to pre-existing conditions such as diabetes, peripheral vascular disease, malnutrition, and being immunocompromised.

It is important to know that some wounds or ulcers may simply need 1-2 modifications to jump-start healing, however, in the face of pre-existing conditions wounds may take a lot longer to heal sometimes 6 months to a year. However, it is extremely important that you are following up with a physician during this time period because open wounds can become infected quickly and a specialist, like our doctors at Harlis Family Foot and Ankle, will know what needs to be done to move past the infection and get you back on track.

A wound may start off as a simple leg cut, or multiple leg wounds. Unfortunately, as time passes and that wound is not healing on your lower leg or foot, it can progress to a non-healing foot wound or non-healing leg wound. To address how to get the wound to heal we must take a deep look at why this wound is stuck in its current stage. Our doctors obtain a thorough history and physical and run a number of tests to assess blood flow, nutritional status, as well as identifying any medical history that can also be contributing to impeding healing. Our physicians at Harlis Family Foot and Ankle in Port St. Lucie are well trained and available to treat your chronic wounds.

Some of the treatment modalities that we use to treat non-healing foot wounds and non-healing leg wounds are:

• Serial debridements
• local wound care
• Home health care with one of our trusted Home health care agencies
• Advanced wound care modalities such as allografts and wound vacs

If you find yourself with a wound on the ankle not healing, non-healing foot wounds and non-healing leg wound you should seek the consultation of a physician immediately.