Leg ulceration

Chronic ulceration of the leg is a disruption of the epidermis and dermis in the lower limb of more than 6 weeks in duration and shows no tendency to heal after 3 months of appropriate treatment or is still not fully healed at 12 months (1,2).

• it affects elderly people more frequently and can be extremely expensive to manage
  • in the UK, the cost of chronic leg ulceration is estimated to be approximately £600 million per annum
• the impact of leg ulceration on the health-related quality of life is of the same order as diabetes and arthritis (1)

A typical history is one of relapsing ulceration over decades.

Leg ulceration may be classified by aetiological frequency into

• venous - 70% of leg ulcers
• arterial -10% of leg ulcers
• mixed disease - 15% of leg ulcers
• less common causes - 5% of leg ulcers (2)

Reference:

• (1) Adeyi A et al. Leg ulcers in older people: A review of management. BJMP 2009;2(3):21-28
• (2) Agale SV. Chronic Leg Ulcers: Epidemiology, Aetiopathogenesis, and Management. Ulcers 2013;vol. 2013, Article ID 413604, 9 pages