RESUMO
Objective: To examine the outcome of the management of Fournier's gangrene in a tertiary health facility in Nigeria
Patients and Methods: Twenty-four consecutive patients with Fournier's gangrene managed over a 20-month period formed the basis of this retrospective study
Results: The mean age of the patients was 64.4 +/- 11.5 years. Seventeen [70.8%] patients had identifiable etiological factors. The etiologies included urethral stricture in 13 [76.4%] patients and scrotal abscess, infected hydrocoele, hydrocoelectomy and urethral carcinoma in one patient [5.9%] each. A predisposing factor was found in one [4.1%] patient who had diabetic keto-acidosis. In 7 [29.2%] patients no precipitating cause was obvious. Twenty-three [95.3%] patients were subjected to debridement and 14 patients with urethral obstruction were treated by suprapubic cystostomy. One [4.7%] patient was not offered surgery because he was moribund. The mean hospital stay for the survivors was 32.5 +/- 6.4 days. Three [12.5%] patients died from overwhelming sepsis
Conclusion: Fournier's gangrene is rarely idiopathic, as an underlying cause is usually found in the majority of cases. Aggressive surgical and medical management can reduce mortality