Hello and welcome to the zero to finals podcast.

My name is Tom and in this episode I'm going to be talking to you about leg ulcers.

And you can find written notes on this topic at zero to finals.com slash leg ulcers

or in the vascular surgery section of the zero to finals surgery book. So let's get straight into it.

Leg ulcers are wounds or breaks in the skin that do not heal or heal slowly due to underlying

pathology. They have the potential to get progressively larger and become more difficult to heal over time.

There are four common types of skin ulcers, venous ulcers, arterial ulcers, diabetic foot ulcers and pressure ulcers.

Here we're going to mainly cover arterial and venous ulcers.

Arterial ulcers result from insufficient blood supply to the skin due to peripheral arterial disease.

Venus ulcers occur due to pooling of blood and waste products in the skin, to venous insufficiency.

Mixed ulcers are a combination of arterial and venous disease that's causing the ulcer.

Before we talk about arterial and venous ulcers, let's talk about some of the other types of ulcers, specifically diabetic foot ulcers and pressure ulcers.

Diabetic foot ulcers are more common in patients

with diabetic neuropathy. Patients who have lost the sensation in their feet are less likely to

realize they've injured their feet or they may have poorly fitting shoes that they don't realize

a poorly fitting.

Additionally, damage to both the small and the large blood vessels impairs the blood supply and impairs the wound healing.

A raised blood sugar level, immune changes and autonomic neuropathy also contribute to

ulceration and poor healing.

Osteomyelitis, which is infection in the bone, is an important complication of diabetic

foot ulcers.

Pressure ulcers are typically seen in patients with reduced mobility, where prolonged pressure

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