What’s new in comprehensive vein care and limb salvage

Significant milestones in the development of effective limb salvage techniques began with the introduction of insulin to combat diabetes in the 1920s. Insulin use drastically reduced deaths from diabetic coma just as mortality from diabetic gangrene surged dramatically. As a result, serious attention focused on the treatment of another byproduct of diabetes — the diabetic foot.

Fast-forward 20 years and there are even more advances in comprehensive vein care and limb salvage treatments — the most important being adopting a team management approach for treatment.

It has been known for a long time that involving different specialties would ultimately be necessary for a successful outcome. Diabetologists and endocrinologists control nutrition and a patient’s glycemic levels; podiatrists and specialists repair wounds; and vascular surgeons improve blood flow. Instead of days, it now takes hours to coordinate the examinations, treatment, and results from these medical disciplines.

Surgical techniques to improve circulation are another improvement in the treatment of at-risk limbs. Of those, the adoption of extreme distal artery reconstruction is one that has reduced the need for toe and transmetatarsal amputations in hundreds of cases. These techniques include stenting and breaking up blockages in the arteries, and the use of radiofrequency techniques to correct vein pathology is being offered exclusively at the Limbstitute.

** Cigarette smoking causes coronary heart disease, the leading cause of death in the United States. Cigarette smokers are 2–4 times more likely to develop coronary heart disease than nonsmokers., Smoking and Tobacco Use, CDC

Finally, the establishment of the Limbstitute itself is one of the most undeniable improvements in limb salvage — especially for patients in surrounding areas. Combining comprehensive vein care limb salvage specialists under one roof helps bring a standard of care and treatment second to none.

Source: National Trends in Healthcare and Family Medicine, Dr. Jerry Kruse, SIU School of Medicine