Table of contents:
- Gangrene sores are most susceptible to diabetes
- What are the treatment options and medication for gangrene at the doctor?
- 1. Use antibiotics
- 2. Operation of body tissues
- 3. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy
- 4. Amputation
Gangrene is a serious complication of sores on the skin caused by a bacterial infection. Although it is quite rare, gangrene can develop rapidly and can be life threatening if left untreated. What are the doctor's gangrene treatment and medication options?
Gangrene sores are most susceptible to diabetes
A wound that is left untreated can become a breeding ground for bacteria to grow. The bacteria will then release toxic gases that cause tissue death.
Most gangrene infections occur due to open sores that become ulcers and surgical scars that are exposed to bacteria. Gangrene can also occur due to disruption of blood flow to certain body tissues and these parts are infected by bacteria.
Gangrene is prone to occur in people with diabetes and atherosclerosis.
What are the treatment options and medication for gangrene at the doctor?
Gangrene can be treated and healed with proper treatment. The doctor will do a variety of ways, depending on the severity of the gangrene, to prevent the infection from spreading to other parts of the body and causing complications.
The following are some of the treatment options and gangrene medications available from doctors.
1. Use antibiotics
Gangrene caused by a bacterial infection can be treated with antibiotics, either by drinking antibiotics or by injection.
The most common types of antibiotics prescribed for gangrene are:
- Penicillin.
- Clindamycin.
- Tetracyclines.
- Chloramphenicol.
- Metronidazole and cephalosporins.
2. Operation of body tissues
For more serious cases of gangrene, doctors will usually operate on body tissue that is already infected. For example, if it is caused by poor blood flow leading to infection, the doctor will operate on you to repair damaged blood vessels.
In some cases, the doctor may use larval debridement therapy, also known as biosurgery. This operation uses certain types of larvae to eat dead and infected body tissue and leave healthy body tissue
This particular larva also helps fight infection by releasing substances that kill bacteria while stimulating the healing process in the affected area. To use the larvae as a drug for gangrene, the doctor will put the larvae in the wound and cover it tightly with gauze. After a few days, the bandage is removed and the maggots on the wound are cleaned.
3. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is a treatment for gangrene that requires you to sit or lie down in a special high-pressure room. You will also wear a plastic head covering filled with oxygen for you to inhale.
This oxygen will later enter the bloodstream to reach the clogged area of the bloodstream and cause infection. This therapy is also able to kill the bacteria that cause gangrene gas.
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is a therapy that can reduce the risk of amputation in gangrene conditions.
4. Amputation
In cases of very severe gangrene, sometimes the infected body part must be amputated as a last resort to prevent the gangrene from spreading to other parts of the body.
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