Maggot debridement therapy (MDT), which lost its importance after discovering antibiotics, has recently come to the fore with the increase of antibiotic resistance. MDT, widely used in human medicine, has had limited use in veterinary medicine. The material of this case report was a 5-month-old Doberman dog that was bandaged due to a fracture of the left hind toe. It was got information that the bandage in the leg area was wet and remained on the wound for five days. As a result, the foot turned into a macerated tissue and gas gangrene was formed. The gangrenous foot area was amputated from the upper 1/3 of the femur. After surgery the amputated area became an infected wound and did not respond to antibiotic therapy. The research was planned to investigate the efficacy of MDT on an infected wound. For this purpose, the sterile first and second instar larvae of Lucilia sericata were used. The first MDT administration was done six days after the amputation procedure. The second maggot application was repeated after 24 hours, and the other two applications were repeated 48 hours intervals. After the first application, it was observed that the amount of discharge gradually decreased in the wound, and rapid healing was detected in the amputation area. The infected wound that did not respond to antibiotic treatment was successfully treated through the sterile L. sericata larvae’ characteristics, promoting wound healing. This suggests that MDT may be widely used in the future, as it is a cheap, effective, natural and easy-to-apply method.
Losing its importance over time with the discovery of antibiotics, maggot debridement therapy (MDT) to treat non-healing wounds tends to increase in recent years. However, its use in veterinary medicine is rather limited than human medicine. The material of this case report consisted of a 5-month-old Doberman dog bandaged for a fracture of the left hind toe. An anamnesis was taken that the bandage on the leg area was wet and remained on the wound for five days, and due to these, the foot turned into a macerated and gangrenous structure. Then, the gangrenous foot was amputated, and an infected wound that did not respond to antibiotic therapy occurred in the amputation area. The study was planned to investigate the efficacy of MDT on a post-operative infected wound. For this purpose, the sterile first and second instar larvae of Lucilia sericata were used. The first MDT administration was performed six days after the amputation. The second application was repeated after 24 hours, and the other two applications were repeated 48 hours intervals. After the first application, the amount of discharge gradually decreased in the wound, and rapid healing was determined. The wound was successfully treated by the wound healing-promoting characteristics of sterile L. sericata larvae. It is thought that this study will contribute to the spread of MDT applications, which are applied at a limited level for the treatment of non-healing chronic infected wounds in the field of veterinary medicine.
Primary Language | English |
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Subjects | Veterinary Surgery, Veterinary Microbiology, Veterinary Parasitology |
Journal Section | Case Report |
Authors | |
Publication Date | June 23, 2023 |
Published in Issue | Year 2023 |