wound care and rehabilitation of Buruli ulcer

Buruli ulcer (BU) is a chronic, necrotizing skin disease caused by infection with a slow growing pathogen, Mycobacterium ulcerans. The disease usually manifests itself as a painless nodule, a firm plaque, or an edematous lesion, which soon ulcerates with characteristic undermined edges. Lesions may occur at any location, but a predilection for affecting limbs has been observed. Wound care plays a pivotal role in the care and treatment outcomes of patients. Even though a combination antibacterial therapy of streptomycin and rifampicin for 8 weeks is effective for treatment, it relies on good and appropriate wound management to prevent secondary bacterial infections and improve healing. Currently, combination antimycobacterial therapy is the mainstay of treatment with additional treatment and care, where it is necessary with surgery and early basic wound management with appropriate dressings as well as physiotherapy when an ulcer is close to a joint. These additional 66LLL Linterventions can mitigate and minimize complications such as contractures and facilitate timely return to normal activity. Basic principles of wound management involve treating or managing relevant systemic conditions, maintaining a moist wound environment, protecting the wound from trauma, promoting a clean wound base, and controlling infection, edema, and lymphedema. Disability with BU can be prevented or minimized through early diagnosis, antibiotic treatment, and surgical excision, together with adequate management of skin, soft tissues (tendon, ligament, muscle), and joints during the woundhealing process. Prevention of disability in BU is a process by which actions are taken to prevent or minimize complications that can cause disability. This may include physical, socioeconomic, psychological, spiritual, environmental, and personal areas. Patients’ rehabilitation is an important component of care to reduce disabilities associated with the disease and proper integration into the community after treatment.

کلیدواژه ها:

Buruli ulcer ، Mycobacterium ulcerans ، wound care ، rehabilitation