ABSTRACT
AIM: To establish a maggot debridement therapy unit and assess efficacy of this method in chronic conservative non-treatable leg ulcers in patient in whom conventional therapy failed. MATERIAL AND METHODS: From August 2004 to December 2005 we treated with Maggot debridement therapy (MDT) 10 patients, 6 men and 4 women, with 13 leg ulcers treated first with conventional and then with maggot therapy. Average age of these patients was 55 years, 11 wounds were of venous and 2 of arterial origin. 7 patients had diabetes mellitus. RESULTS: 1 patient with arterial ulcers underwent supracondylar amputation, 2 patients were re-admitted for recurrent ulcers, one extremely obese patient with cardiovascular co-morbidity did not heal, but all other ulcers have been healed, cleared or minimised during 4-8 week MDT. We observed massive growth of granulation tissue and microbiological cleaning of these wounds. No adverse effects were observed. CONCLUSION: Maggot therapy was more effective and efficient in debriding non-healing leg ulcers than a conservative treatment (Fig. 3, Ref. 6).