ISSN:
1524-475X
Source:
Blackwell Publishing Journal Backfiles 1879-2005
Topics:
Medicine
Notes:
Introduction: Many patients receiving heart surgery have extensive operation scars on the skin surface of the chest wall and lower leg. In some cases there are long lasting open wounds in the lower leg after vein harvesting. Some patients complain of pain and itching and we can recognize hypertrophic or extensive scars, which we have to treat.Case and result: We treated 16 patients (11 men and 5 women) ranging in age from 47 to 86. They were receiving many drugs such as anticoagulants, thus wound healing was delayed. In these cases, we choose not to resect tissue but apply ointment to remove necrotic tissue, and prepare good granulation tissue for smooth epithelization. Then, we employ prophylactic measures against hypertrophic scar formation such as tape containing steroid, silicon gel sheets and skin tapes as well oral medicine (toranilast) for the same purpose. Because of they have had to continuously take many oral medicines, these patients often do not want to take additional oral medicine. This is one point of difference in the treatment of heart surgery patients and patients with other types of wounds.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1067-1927.2005.130116k.x
