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Housecall, our weekly general-interest e-newsletter, keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics with timely, reliable, practical information, recipes, blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts and more. Our biweekly topic-specific e-newsletters also include blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts, and other useful information that will help you manage your health.
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Mayo Clinic Housecall
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Prevention
By Mayo Clinic staffHere are a few suggestions to help you reduce your risk of developing gangrene:
- Care for your diabetes. If you have diabetes, make sure you examine your hands and feet daily for cuts, sores and signs of infection, such as redness, swelling or drainage. Ask your doctor to examine your hands and feet at least once a year.
- Don't use tobacco. The chronic use of tobacco products can damage your blood vessels.
- Help prevent infections. Wash any open wounds with a mild soap and water and try to keep them clean and dry until they heal.
- Watch out when the temperature drops. Frostbitten skin can lead to gangrene, because frostbite impairs blood circulation in an affected area. If you notice that any area of your skin has become pale, hard, cold and numb after prolonged exposure to cold temperatures, call your doctor.
References
- Meislin HW, et al. Soft tissue infections. In: Marx JA, et al., eds. Rosen's Emergency Medicine: Concepts and Clinical Practice. 6th ed. St. Louis, Mo.: Mosby; 2006. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/141947879-3/849444931/1365/420.html#4-u1.0-B0-323-02845-4..50140-2_7293. Accessed June 4, 2009.
- Stevens DL. Necrotizing fasciitis, gas gangrene, myositis and myonecrosis. In: Cohen J, et al. Infectious Diseases. 2nd ed. St. Louis, Mo.: Mosby; 2004. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/141947879-5/849445124/1209/32.html#4-u1.0-B0-323-02407-6..50012-X_334. Accessed June 4, 2009.
- Stevens DL. Necrotizing infections of the skin and fascia. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed June 4, 2009.
- Abrahamian FM, et al. Management of skin and soft-tissue infections in the emergency department. Infectious Disease Clinics of North America. 2008;22:89.
- May AK. Skin and soft tissue infections. Surgical Clinics of North America. 2009;89:403.
- Kaide CG. Hyperbaric oxygen: Applications in infectious disease. Emergency Medicine Clinics of North America. 2008;26:571.
- Neschis DG. Clinical manifestations and evaluation of chronic critical limb ischemia. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed June 4, 2009.
- Sepsis and septic shock. The Merck Manuals: The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals. http://www.merck.com/mmpe/sec06/ch068/ch068a.html. Accessed June 4, 2009.
- Anderson DJ, et al. Skin and soft tissue infections in older adults. Clinics in Geriatric Medicine. 2007;23:595.
- Sheps SG (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. June 6, 2009.
