Gangrene

Original Editor - Kirenga Bamurange Liliane Top Contributors - Kirenga Bamurange Liliane, Kim Jackson, Lucinda hampton, Cindy John-Chu and Nupur Smit Shah

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Introduction

Gangrene is the death of body tissues due to the loss of blood. It can be caused by illness, injury, or infection and usually happens in extremities like fingers, toes, and limbs. Gangrene can also occur in your organs and muscles .

Symptoms

Signs and symptoms of gangrene may include the following:

• Skin discoloration which can be from pale to blue, purple, black, bronze or red, depending on the type of gangrene you have
• Swelling
• Blisters
• Sudden, severe pain followed by a feeling of numbness
• A foul-smelling discharge leaking from a sore
• Thin, shiny skin, or skin without hair
• Fever and feeling unwell depending on the type of gangrene

Types of Gangrene

There are two main types of Gangrene:

1. Dry Gangrene

Dry gangrene is frequently observed among patients who have vascular disease, diabetes and autoimmune diseases. It usually affects the hands and feet and happens when there is a poor blood circulation to a certain area. Therefore, the tissue that dries up changes color and can either turn brown, purplish-blue or black before the tissue can fall off. There is no infection associated to dry gangrene, but it can lead to wet gangrene if infected.

1. Wet Gangrene
   
   
   Wet gangrene is a condition that involves an infection. Swelling and blistering of the tissue are observed. An infection from wet gangrene can rapidly spread swift around the body. For a patient with history of foot ulcer or tissue injury post diabetes or ischemia, the presence of drainage and edema should be a red flag for a wet gangrene diagnosis. Moreover, a thorough evaluation of the foot is needed to rule out any presence of deep foot abscess that comes with a plantar tenderness . Wet gangrene can progress from dry gangrene as the necrotic tissue becomes infected. In this case, it is therefore accompanied by an edematous and erythematous tissue surrounding the necrotic area .

The following types are parts of Wet Gangrene:

• Internal gangrene affects internal organs such as appendix or colon most of the times.
• Gas gangrene is rare and dangerous. It is due to an infection inside the body. If left untreated, gas gangrene can cause death within 48hrs .
• Fournier's gangrene is also a rare condition caused by an infection of the genital area. When the infection gets in the bloodstream, it is referred to sepsis and is life-threatening. This type of gangrene affects more often men than women.
• Progressive bacterial synergistic gangrene also called Meleney's gangrene usually causes painful lesions on the skin one or two weeks post surgery or a minor trauma.