Defocused Shock Wave Therapy for Chronic Wounds

Defocused Shock Wave Therapy for Chronic Soft Tissue Wounds of the Lower Limbs. A Pilot Study

Chronic soft tissue wounds of the lower limbs are painful and debilitating condition that significantly reduce the quality of life of the patient. They often do not respond to conservative treatments or advanced wound managements. Focused and defocused extracorporeal shock wave therapy can be a viable alternative therapeutic strategy.

The purpose of the study was to examine the effects of defocused extracorporeal shock wave treatment on chronic soft tissue wounds of the lower limbs, in terms of the rate of wound healing and pain control.

Inclusion Criteria:

• chronic post-traumatic, venous, arterial, diabetic, or mixed wound of the lower limb
• wound persisting for longer than three months
• a wound surface bigger than 0,5 cm2
• a wound diameter between 0.5 and 5 cm
• unresponsiveness to conservative treatments and advanced wound managements in the 3 months prior to enrollment
• no changes in wound managements during the study.

Exclusion Criteria:

• an ankle brachial index (ABPI)<0.7 and TcPO2<40 mmHg
• arrhythmias, presence of pacemaker, or coagulation disorders
• use of anticoagulant drugs
• neoplasia
• pregnancy
• soft tissue wound infections and/or osteomyelitis
• patients with full-thickness loss of soft tissue and extension into muscle, bone, tendon, or joint capsule.