Chapters authored
Low-Frequency Contact Ultrasonic Debridement in Diabetic Foot Ulcer
Diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) are important causes of morbidity and mortality in people with diabetes mellitus (DM). Between 19 and 34% of patients with DM will develop a DFU in their lifetime. If not treated correctly, these wounds can result in complications such as infection, amputation, and the death of the patient. A fundamental part of local wound care is debridement, which consists of removing non-viable tissue from the wound bed in order to obtain healthy tissue to promote healing. An alternative to traditional debridement techniques (sharp, enzymatic, autolytic, and biological debridement) is low-frequency ultrasonic debridement (LFUD). The effectiveness of LFUD is based on the non-thermal effects of cavitation and micro-streaming, which generate a series of clinical effects on the wound bed: debridement effect, wound healing stimulant effect, and bactericidal effect. Several recent studies have demonstrated a positive effect of LFUD with higher healing rates, shorter healing times, greater percentages of wound area reduction, and a significant reduction in bacterial load in DFUs. This chapter aims to give an overview of this type of recent mechanical debridement in the treatment of patients with DFUs.
Part of the book: Diabetic Foot Ulcers