RESUMO
Objective:To evaluate a wound diagnosis and treatment mode with integrated medical care in the repair of chronic infectious wounds plus bone exposure at lower extremities.Methods:A retrospective analysis was conducted of the 64 patients with chronic infectious wound plus bone exposure at the lower 1/3 of the leg who had been admitted to Department of Orthopedics Trauma and Microsurgery, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University from January 2019 to December 2021. The patients were divided into 2 groups according to the wound diagnosis and treatment mode. In the observation group of 31 patients subjected to the wound diagnosis and treatment mode with integrated medical care led by specialist nurses, there were 24 males and 7 females with an age of (53.6±12.4) years, the wound was located at the tibial side in 15 cases and at the fibular side in 16 cases, the wound areas averaged [28.27 (23.56, 37.70) cm 2], and the time from injury to treatment was (27.3±4.1) d. Evaluation of the patient's condition, wound diagnosis and formulation of treatment protocols were performed jointly by a doctor-nurse team after the patients were admitted, and continuous diagnosis and treatment of the wounds were carried out mainly by specialist nurses during the doctors' follow-up. In the control group of 33 patients subjected to the conventional wound diagnosis and treatment mode led by doctors, there were 25 males and 8 females with an age of (51.3±14.3) years, the wound was located at the tibial side in 17 cases and at the fibular side in 16 cases, the wound areas averaged [27.49 (17.84, 40.45) cm 2], and the time from injury to treatment was (27.6±4.0) d. The 2 groups were compared in the wound healing rate, wound recurrence rate, hospitalization time and patients' satisfaction. Results:There was no significant difference in the preoperative general data between the 2 groups, showing comparability ( P>0.05). The observation group achieved a significantly higher wound healing rate within 1 month after treatment [83.87% (26/31)] than the control group [60.61% (20/33)], a significantly lower wound recurrence rate within 6 months after treatment [0% (0/31)] than the control group [18.18% (6/33)], significantly shorter hospitalization time [18.0 (15.1, 20.9) d] than the control group [26.8 (18.4, 40.1) d], and significantly higher patients' satisfaction [50 (50, 50) points] than the control group [50 (42, 50) points] (all P<0.05). Conclusion:In the repair of chronic infectious wounds plus bone exposure at lower extremities, the wound diagnosis and treatment mode with integrated medical care led by specialist nurses may result in a higher wound healing rate, a lower wound recurrence rate, a shorter hospital stay and higher patients' satisfaction than the conventional wound diagnosis and treatment mode led by doctors.