Gangrene | |
---|---|
Other names | Gangrenous necrosis |
Dry gangrene affecting the toes as a result of peripheral artery disease | |
Specialty | Infectious disease, surgery, podiatry |
Symptoms | Change in skin color to red or black, numbness, pain, skin breakdown, coolness [1] |
Complications | Sepsis, amputation [1] [2] |
Types | Dry, wet, gas, internal, necrotizing fasciitis [3] |
Risk factors | Diabetes, peripheral arterial disease, smoking, major trauma, alcoholism, plague, HIV/AIDS, frostbite, Raynaud's syndrome [3] [4] |
Diagnostic method | Based on symptom, With medical imaging used to identify the underlying cause. |
Treatment | Depends on underlying cause [5] |
Prognosis | Variable |
Frequency | Unknown [2] |
Gangrene is a type of tissue death caused by a lack of blood supply. [4] Symptoms may include a change in skin color to red or black, numbness, swelling, pain, skin breakdown, and coolness. [1] The feet and hands are most commonly affected. [1] If the gangrene is caused by an infectious agent, it may present with a fever or sepsis. [1]
Risk factors include diabetes, peripheral arterial disease, smoking, major trauma, alcoholism, HIV/AIDS, frostbite, influenza, dengue fever, malaria, chickenpox, plague, hypernatremia, radiation injuries, meningococcal disease, Group B streptococcal infection and Raynaud's syndrome. [3] [4] It can be classified as dry gangrene, wet gangrene, gas gangrene, internal gangrene, and necrotizing fasciitis. [3] The diagnosis of gangrene is based on symptoms and supported by tests such as medical imaging. [6]
Treatment may involve surgery to remove the dead tissue, antibiotics to treat any infection, and efforts to address the underlying cause. [5] Surgical efforts may include debridement, amputation, or the use of maggot therapy. [5] Efforts to treat the underlying cause may include bypass surgery or angioplasty. [5] In certain cases, hyperbaric oxygen therapy may be useful. [5] How commonly the condition occurs is unknown. [2]
The etymology of gangrene derives from the Latin word gangraena and from the Greek gangraina (γάγγραινα), which means "putrefaction of tissues". [7]
Symptoms may include a change in skin color to red or black, numbness, pain, skin breakdown, and coolness. [1] The feet and hands are most commonly involved. [1]
Gangrene is caused by a critically insufficient blood supply (e.g., peripheral vascular disease) or infection. [3] [8] [9] It is associated with diabetes [10] and long-term tobacco smoking. [4] [3]
Dry gangrene is a form of coagulative necrosis that develops in ischemic tissue, where the blood supply is inadequate to keep tissue viable. It is not a disease itself, but a symptom of other diseases. [11] The term dry is used only when referring to a limb or to the gut (in other locations, this same type of necrosis is called an infarction, such as myocardial infarction). [12] Dry gangrene is often due to peripheral artery disease, but can be due to acute limb ischemia. As a result, people with atherosclerosis, high cholesterol, diabetes and smokers commonly have dry gangrene. [13] The limited oxygen in the ischemic limb limits putrefaction and bacteria fail to survive. The affected part is dry, shrunken, and dark reddish-black. The line of separation usually brings about complete separation, with eventual falling off of the gangrenous tissue if it is not removed surgically, a process called autoamputation. [13]
Dry gangrene is the result of chronic ischemia without infection. If ischemia is detected early, when ischemic wounds rather than gangrene are present, the process can be treated by revascularization (via vascular bypass or angioplasty). [14] However, once gangrene has developed, the affected tissues are not salvageable. [15] Because dry gangrene is not accompanied by infection, it is not as emergent as gas gangrene or wet gangrene, both of which have a risk of sepsis. Over time, dry gangrene may develop into wet gangrene if an infection develops in the dead tissues. [16]
Diabetes mellitus is a risk factor for peripheral vascular disease, thus for dry gangrene, but also a risk factor for wet gangrene, particularly in patients with poorly controlled blood sugar levels, as elevated serum glucose creates a favorable environment for bacterial infection. [17]
Wet, or infected, gangrene is characterized by thriving bacteria and has a poor prognosis (compared to dry gangrene) due to sepsis resulting from the free communication between infected fluid and circulatory fluid. In wet gangrene, the tissue is infected by saprogenic microorganisms ( Clostridium perfringens or Bacillus fusiformis , for example), which cause tissue to swell and emit a foul odor. Wet gangrene usually develops rapidly due to blockage of venous (mainly) or arterial blood flow. [13] The affected part is saturated with stagnant blood, which promotes the rapid growth of bacteria. The toxic products formed by bacteria are absorbed, causing systemic manifestation of sepsis and finally death. The affected part is edematous, soft, putrid, rotten, and dark.[ citation needed ]
Because of the high mortality associated with infected gangrene (about 80% without treatment and 20% with treatment), an emergency salvage amputation, such as a guillotine amputation, is often needed to limit systemic effects of the infection. [18] Such an amputation can be converted to a formal amputation, such as a below- or above-knee amputation. [18]
Gas gangrene is a bacterial infection that produces gas within tissues. It can be caused by Clostridium , most commonly alpha toxin-producing C. perfringens, or various nonclostridial species. [9] [19] Infection spreads rapidly as the gases produced by the bacteria expand and infiltrate healthy tissue in the vicinity. Because of its ability to quickly spread to surrounding tissues, gas gangrene should be treated as a medical emergency.
Gas gangrene is caused by bacterial exotoxin-producing clostridial species, which are mostly found in soil, and other anaerobes such as Bacteroides and anaerobic streptococci. These environmental bacteria may enter the muscle through a wound and subsequently proliferate in necrotic tissue and secrete powerful toxins that destroy nearby tissue, generating gas at the same time. A gas composition of 5.9% hydrogen, 3.4% carbon dioxide, 74.5% nitrogen, and 16.1% oxygen was reported in one clinical case. [20]
Gas gangrene can cause necrosis, gas production, and sepsis. Progression to toxemia and shock is often very rapid. [21]
Treatment varies based on the severity and type of gangrene. [13]
Exercises such as walking and massage therapy may be tried. [13]
Medications may include pain management, medications that promote circulation in the circulatory system and antibiotics. Since gangrene is associated with periodic pain caused by too little blood flow, pain management is important so patients can continue doing exercises that promote circulation. Pain management medications can include opioids and opioid-like analgesics. Since gangrene is a result of ischemia, circulatory system management is important. These medications can include antiplatelet drug, anticoagulant, and fibrinolytics. As infection is often associated with gangrene, antibiotics are often a critical component of its treatment. The life-threatening nature of gangrene requires treatment with intravenous antibiotics in an inpatient setting. [13] Antibiotics alone are not effective because they may not penetrate infected tissues sufficiently. [27]
Surgical removal of all dead tissue, however, is the mainstay of treatment for gangrene. Often, gangrene is associated with underlying infection, thus the gangrenous tissue must be debrided to hinder the spread of the associated infection. The extent of surgical debridement needed depends on the extent of the gangrene and may be limited to the removal of a finger, toe, or ear, but in severe cases may involve a limb amputation. [13]
Dead tissue alone does not require debridement, and in some cases, such as dry gangrene, the affected part falls off (autoamputates), making surgical removal unnecessary. Waiting for autoamputation, however, may cause health complications as well as decreased quality of life. [13]
After the gangrene is treated with debridement and antibiotics, the underlying cause can be treated. In the case of gangrene due to critical limb ischemia, revascularization can be performed to treat the underlying peripheral underlateral artery disease.[ citation needed ]
Ischemic disease of the legs is the most common reason for amputations. In about a quarter of these cases, the other side requires amputation in the next three years. [28]
Angioplasty should be considered if severe blockage in lower leg vessels (tibial and peroneal artery) leads to gangrene. [29]
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy treatment is used to treat gas gangrene. It increases pressure and oxygen content to allow blood to carry more oxygen to inhibit anaerobic organism growth and reproduction. [30]
Regenerative medical treatments and stem-cell therapies have successfully altered gangrene and ulcer prognosis.[ citation needed ]
As early as 1028, flies and maggots were commonly used to treat chronic wounds or ulcers to prevent or arrest necrotic spread, [31] as some species of maggots consume only dead flesh, leaving nearby living tissue unaffected. This practice largely died out after the introduction of antibiotics to the range of treatments for wounds. In recent times, however, maggot therapy has regained some credibility and is sometimes employed with great efficacy in cases of chronic tissue necrosis. [32] [33] [34]
The French Baroque composer Jean-Baptiste Lully contracted gangrene in January 1687 when, while conducting a performance of his Te Deum , he stabbed his own toe with his pointed staff (which was used as a baton). The disease spread to his leg, but the composer refused to have his toe amputated, which eventually led to his death in March of that year. [35]
French King Louis XIV died of gangrene in his leg on 1 September 1715, four days prior to his 77th birthday. [36]
Sebald Justinus Brugmans, Professor at Leyden University, from 1795 on Director of the Medical Bureau of the Batavian Republic, and inspector-general of the French Imperial Military Health-Service in 1811, became a leading expert in the fight against hospital-gangrene and its prevention. He wrote a treatise on gangrene in 1814 in which he meticulously analyzed and explained the causes of this dreadful disease, which he was convinced was contagious. He completed his entry with a thorough evaluation of all possible and well experienced sanitary regulations. His work was very well received and was instrumental in convincing most later authors that gangrene was a contagious disease. [37] [38]
John M. Trombold wrote: "Middleton Goldsmith, a surgeon in the Union Army during the American Civil War, meticulously studied hospital gangrene and developed a revolutionary treatment regimen. The cumulative Civil War hospital gangrene mortality was 45%. Goldsmith's method, which he applied to over 330 cases, yielded a mortality under 3%." [39] Goldsmith advocated the use of debridement and topical and injected bromide solutions on infected wounds to reduce the incidence and virulence of "poisoned miasma". Copies of his book [40] were issued to Union surgeons to encourage the use of his methods. [41]
Necrosis is a form of cell injury which results in the premature death of cells in living tissue by autolysis. The term "necrosis" came about in the mid-19th century and is commonly attributed to German pathologist Rudolf Virchow, who is often regarded as one of the founders of modern pathology. Necrosis is caused by factors external to the cell or tissue, such as infection, or trauma which result in the unregulated digestion of cell components. In contrast, apoptosis is a naturally occurring programmed and targeted cause of cellular death. While apoptosis often provides beneficial effects to the organism, necrosis is almost always detrimental and can be fatal.
Group A streptococcal infections are a number of infections with Streptococcus pyogenes, a group A streptococcus (GAS). S. pyogenes is a species of beta-hemolytic Gram-positive bacteria that is responsible for a wide range of infections that are mostly common and fairly mild. If the bacteria enters the bloodstream, the infection can become severe and life-threatening, and is called an invasive GAS (iGAS).
Vibrio is a genus of Gram-negative bacteria, possessing a curved-rod (comma) shape, several species of which can cause foodborne infection or soft-tissue infection called Vibriosis. Infection is commonly associated with eating undercooked seafood. Being highly salt tolerant and unable to survive in freshwater, Vibrio spp. are commonly found in various salt water environments. Vibrio spp. are facultative anaerobes that test positive for oxidase and do not form spores. All members of the genus are motile. They are able to have polar or lateral flagellum with or without sheaths. Vibrio species typically possess two chromosomes, which is unusual for bacteria. Each chromosome has a distinct and independent origin of replication, and are conserved together over time in the genus. Recent phylogenies have been constructed based on a suite of genes.
Necrotizing fasciitis (NF), also known as flesh-eating disease, is a bacterial infection that results in the death of parts of the body's soft tissue. It is a severe disease of sudden onset that spreads rapidly. Symptoms usually include red or purple skin in the affected area, severe pain, fever, and vomiting. The most commonly affected areas are the limbs and perineum.
Vibrio vulnificus is a species of Gram-negative, motile, curved rod-shaped (vibrio), pathogenic bacteria of the genus Vibrio. Present in marine environments such as estuaries, brackish ponds, or coastal areas, V. vulnificus is related to V. cholerae, the causative agent of cholera. At least one strain of V. vulnificus is bioluminescent. Increasing seasonal ocean temperatures and low-salt marine environments like estuaries favor a greater concentration of Vibrio within filter-feeding shellfish; V. vulnificus infections in the Eastern United States have increased eightfold from 1988–2018.
Cellulitis is usually a bacterial infection involving the inner layers of the skin. It specifically affects the dermis and subcutaneous fat. Signs and symptoms include an area of redness which increases in size over a few days. The borders of the area of redness are generally not sharp and the skin may be swollen. While the redness often turns white when pressure is applied, this is not always the case. The area of infection is usually painful. Lymphatic vessels may occasionally be involved, and the person may have a fever and feel tired.
Maggot therapy is a type of biotherapy involving the introduction of live, disinfected maggots into non-healing skin and soft-tissue wounds of a human or other animal for the purpose of cleaning out the necrotic (dead) tissue within a wound (debridement), and disinfection.
Gas gangrene is a bacterial infection that produces tissue gas in gangrene. This deadly form of gangrene usually is caused by Clostridium perfringens bacteria. About 1,000 cases of gas gangrene are reported yearly in the United States.
A chronic wound is a wound that does not heal in an orderly set of stages and in a predictable amount of time the way most wounds do; wounds that do not heal within three months are often considered chronic. Chronic wounds seem to be detained in one or more of the phases of wound healing. For example, chronic wounds often remain in the inflammatory stage for too long. To overcome that stage and jump-start the healing process, a number of factors need to be addressed such as bacterial burden, necrotic tissue, and moisture balance of the whole wound. In acute wounds, there is a precise balance between production and degradation of molecules such as collagen; in chronic wounds this balance is lost and degradation plays too large a role.
Lymphangitis is an inflammation or an infection of the lymphatic channels that occurs as a result of infection at a site distal to the channel. It may present as long red streaks spreading away from the site of infection. It is a possible medical emergency as involvement of the lymphatic system allows for an infection to spread rapidly. The most common cause of lymphangitis in humans is bacteria, in which case sepsis and death could result within hours if left untreated. The most commonly involved bacteria include Streptococcus pyogenes and hemolytic streptococci. In some cases, it can be caused by viruses such as mononucleosis or cytomegalovirus, as well as specific conditions such as tuberculosis or syphilis, and the fungus Sporothrix schenckii. Lymphangitis is sometimes mistakenly called "blood poisoning". In reality, "blood poisoning" is synonymous with sepsis.
Mediastinitis is inflammation of the tissues in the mid-chest, or mediastinum. It can be either acute or chronic. It is thought to be due to four different etiologies:
Fournier gangrene is a type of necrotizing fasciitis or gangrene affecting the external genitalia or perineum. It commonly occurs in older men, but it can also occur both in women and children and in people with diabetes or alcoholism or those who are immunocompromised.
Clostridium septicum is a gram positive, spore forming, obligate anaerobic bacterium.
Pseudomonas infection refers to a disease caused by one of the species of the genus Pseudomonas.
Arterial insufficiency ulcers are mostly located on the lateral surface of the ankle or the distal digits. They are commonly caused by peripheral artery disease (PAD).
Proteases are in use, or have been proposed or tried, for a number of purposes related to medicine or surgery. Some preparations involving protease have undergone successful clinical trials and have regulatory authorization; and some further ones have shown apparently useful effects in experimental medical studies. Proteases have also been used by proponents of alternative therapies, or identified in materials of traditional or folk medicine. A serine protease of human origin, activated protein C, was produced in recombinant form and marketed as Drotrecogin alfa and licensed for intensive-care treatment of severe sepsis. It was voluntarily withdrawn by the manufacturer in 2011 after being shown to be ineffective.
Hathewaya histolytica is a species of bacteria found in feces and the soil. It is a motile, gram-positive, aerotolerant anaerobe. H. histolytica is pathogenic in many species, including guinea pigs, mice, and rabbits, and humans. H. histolytica has been shown to cause gas gangrene, often in association with other bacteria species.
Anaerobic infections are caused by anaerobic bacteria. Obligately anaerobic bacteria do not grow on solid media in room air ; facultatively anaerobic bacteria can grow in the presence or absence of air. Microaerophilic bacteria do not grow at all aerobically or grow poorly, but grow better under 10% carbon dioxide or anaerobically. Anaerobic bacteria can be divided into strict anaerobes that can not grow in the presence of more than 0.5% oxygen and moderate anaerobic bacteria that are able of growing between 2 and 8% oxygen. Anaerobic bacteria usually do not possess catalase, but some can generate superoxide dismutase which protects them from oxygen.
Chronic limb threatening ischemia (CLTI), also known as critical limb ischemia (CLI), is an advanced stage of peripheral artery disease (PAD). It is defined as ischemic rest pain, arterial insufficiency ulcers, and gangrene. The latter two conditions are jointly referred to as tissue loss, reflecting the development of surface damage to the limb tissue due to the most severe stage of ischemia. Compared to the other manifestation of PAD, intermittent claudication, CLI has a negative prognosis within a year after the initial diagnosis, with 1-year amputation rates of approximately 12% and mortality of 50% at 5 years and 70% at 10 years.
Diabetic foot infection is any infection of the foot in a diabetic person. The most frequent cause of hospitalization for diabetic patients is due to foot infections. Symptoms may include pus from a wound, redness, swelling, pain, warmth, tachycardia, or tachypnea. Complications can include infection of the bone, tissue death, amputation, or sepsis. They are common and occur equally frequently in males and females. Older people are more commonly affected.