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The influence of different sub-bandage pressure values on venous leg ulcers healing when treated with compression therapy |
Milic DJ, Zivic SS, Bogdanovic DC, Jovanovic MM, Jankovic RJ, Milosevic ZD, Stamenkovic DM, Trenkic MS |
Journal of Vascular Surgery 2010 Mar;51(3):655-661 |
clinical trial |
6/10 [Eligibility criteria: No; Random allocation: Yes; Concealed allocation: No; Baseline comparability: Yes; Blind subjects: No; Blind therapists: No; Blind assessors: No; Adequate follow-up: Yes; Intention-to-treat analysis: Yes; Between-group comparisons: Yes; Point estimates and variability: Yes. Note: Eligibility criteria item does not contribute to total score] *This score has been confirmed* |
BACKGROUND: Venous leg ulcers (VLU) have a huge social and economic impact. An estimated 1.5% of European adults will suffer a venous ulcer at some point in their lives. Despite the widespread use of bandaging with high pressure in the treatment of this condition, recurrence rates range between 25% to 70%. Numerous studies have suggested that the compression system should provide sub-bandage pressure values in the range from 35 mmHg to 45 mmHg in order to achieve the best possible healing results. METHODS: An open, randomized, prospective, single-center study was performed in order to determine the healing rates of VLU when treated with different compression systems and different sub-bandage pressure values. One hundred thirty-one patients (72 women, 59 men; mean age 59-years-old) with VLU (ulcer surface > 3 cm2; duration > 3 months) were randomized into three groups: group A -- 42 patients who were treated using an open-toed, elastic, class III compression device knitted in tubular form (Tubulcus, Laboratoires Innothera, Arcueil, France); group B -- 46 patients treated with the multi-component bandaging system comprised of Tubulcus and one elastic bandage (15 cm wide and 5 cm long with 200% stretch, Niva, Novi Sad, Serbia); and group C -- forty-three patients treated with the multi-component bandaging system comprised of Tubulcus and two elastic bandages. Pressure measurements were taken with the Kikuhime device (TT MediTrade, Soro, Denmark) at the B1 measuring point in the supine, sitting, and standing positions under the three different compression systems. RESULTS: The median resting values in the supine and standing positions in examined study groups were as follows: group A -- 36.2 mmHg and 43.9 mmHg; group B -- 53.9 mmHg and 68.2 mmHg; group C -- 74.0 mmHg and 87.4 mmHg. The healing rate during the 26-week treatment period was 25% (13/42) in group A, 67.4% (31/46) in group B, and 74.4% (32/43) in group C. The success of compression treatment in group A was strongly associated with the small ulcer surface (< 5 cm2) and smaller calf circumference (CC; < 38 cm). On the other hand, compliance in group A was good. In groups B and C, compliance was poor in patients with small CC, but the healing rate was high, especially in patients with large ulcers and a large CC (> 43 cm). CONCLUSION: The results obtained in this study indicate that better healing results are achieved with two or multi-component compression systems than with single-component compression systems and that a compression system should be individually determined for each patient according to individual characteristics of the leg and CC. Target sub-bandage pressure value (B1 measuring point in the sitting position) of the compression system needed for the ulcer healing could be determined according to a simple formula, CC+CC/2.
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