Impediments to wound healing

Chronic wounds will often heal in a short period of time if factors that inhibit wound healing are identified and managed, Recombinant growth factor therapy may provide an added stimulus to healing in certain types of chronic wounds. However, there remains no substitute for a physiologic environment conducive to tissue repair and regeneration, without which the efficacy of growth factor therapy is questionable. Some of the most commonly encountered and clinically significant impediments to wound healing include wound hypoxia, infection, presence of debris and necrotic tissue, use of anti-inflammatory medications, a diet deficient in vitamins or minerals, or general nutritional deficiencies, tumors, environmental factors, and metabolic disorders, such as diabetes mellitus. Treatment of chronic wounds should be directed against the main etiologic factors responsible for the wound. Moreover, factors that may impede healing must be identified and, if possible, corrected, for healing to occur. Am J Surg. 1998;176(Suppl 2A):39S-47S. (C) 1998 by Excerpta Medica, Inc.