A REVIEW OF MAGGOT DEBRIDEMENT THERAPY IN DIABETIC FOOT ULCER

Abstract

the protocol for treating diabetic foot ulcers which occur in at least 15% of patients with diabetes and precede 84% of leg amputations. Debridement may be surgical or non-surgical. Surgical debridement is carried out using sharp instruments. It has some complications like perioperative bleeding and general complications of anaesthesia. It demands skilled surgeon. Non-surgical debridement includes autolytic, enzymatic, mechanical and biological debridement. All the methods have their own advantages and disadvantages. Biological debridement is a technique based on the use of maggots to remove necrotic tissues from chronic wound. Maggots or larvae of flies are applied on the infected wound. Maggots excrete the enzyme which degrade and liquefy necrotic tissue and later on ingest this from the wound. It is relatively painless procedure as compared to the surgical debridement. This technique has been granted FDA approval in US since 2004. All classical and contemporary literature especially PubMed database regarding maggot debridement therapy and diabetic foot ulcer is scrutinised for the review. It was found that Maggot debridement therapy (MDT) is the better technique as compared to other non-surgical debridement methods for management of diabetic foot ulcer. Sushruta the father of surgery was the first to introduce the maggot therapy in context to kaphaja arbuda (a type of tumour). It is the need of time to conserve this basic principle as a non-surgical method for debridement.