This site is intended for healthcare professionals

Sign in
Go to /sign-in page

You can view 5 more pages before signing in

History

Last reviewed dd mmm yyyy. Last edited dd mmm yyyy

Authoring team

A comprehensive history is vital in making a diagnosis of any leg ulcer. These should include:

  • general health status
  • past and current medical history of relevant diseases e.g. - deep vein thrombosis, diabetes, autoimmune disorders, inflammatory bowel disease, and connective tissue disease
  • history and status of the ulcer
    • rapidity of onset
    • preceding events, e.g. trauma or surgery at the site of the ulcer
    • duration of ulceration; gives an indication of chronicity and likelihood of successful treatment
    • previous treatment
    • whether it is a first episode or recurrent
    • symptoms:
      • venous disease:
        • pain
        • 'heaviness'
        • aching
        • itching
        • swelling
        • pigmentation
        • eczema
      • arterial:
        • intermittent claudication
        • pain, which persists at rest
  • relevant predisposing factors
    • venous disease:
    • varicose veins
    • deep vein thrombosis in past
    • phlebitis
    • previous fractures, trauma or surgery
    • arterial disease:
      • ischaemic heart disease
      • transient ischaemic attacks of cerebrovascular events
      • peripheral vascular disease
      • cigarette smoking
      • hypertension
      • hypercholesterolaemia
      • diabetes mellitus
      • rheumatoid arthritis
  • family history e.g. venous disease, diabetes mellitus
  • recent foreign travel; may be suggestive of rare infective aetiologies
  • ambulatory status of patient
  • type of footwear worn
  • patient psychological status; likely compliance with treatment
  • nutrition (1,2,3)

Quality of life in patients with leg ulcers has shown to be poor when compared with age matched controls.

  • pain was the major complaint with males experiencing greater pain intensity than females
  • in addition restricted mobility, sleep disturbances etc are responsible for poor quality of life (2,3)

Reference:

Create an account to add page annotations

Create a free account

Annotations allow you to add information to this page that would be handy to have on hand during a consultation. E.g. a website or number. This information will always show when you visit this page.

The content herein is provided for informational purposes and does not replace the need to apply professional clinical judgement when diagnosing or treating any medical condition. A licensed medical practitioner should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions.

Connect

Copyright 2024 Oxbridge Solutions Limited, a subsidiary of OmniaMed Communications Limited. All rights reserved. Any distribution or duplication of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited. Oxbridge Solutions receives funding from advertising but maintains editorial independence.