Podcast 774: Maggots

<p><strong>Contributor: Chris Holmes, MD</strong></p> <p><strong>Educational Pearls:</strong></p> <ul> <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style= "font-weight: 400;">Maggots were discovered as a therapy to help wound healing in WWI, but this fell out of favor after the discovery of penicillin</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style= "font-weight: 400;">One study from Israel used maggots in treating diabetic foot wound with positive results but notable patient discomfort</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style= "font-weight: 400;">Maggots debride tissue, kill MRSA, promote angiogenesis, and promote fibroblast migration to lay down new tissue</span></li> <li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style= "font-weight: 400;">While maggots may be very useful in wound healing, the reality of the therapy may make patients very uncomfortable</span></li> </ul> <p><strong>References</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Gilead L, Mumcuoglu KY, Ingber A. The use of maggot debridement therapy in the treatment of chronic wounds in hospitalised and ambulatory patients. J Wound Care. 2012 Feb;21(2):78, 80, 82-85. doi: 10.12968/jowc.2012.21.2.78. PMID: 22584527.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Mohd Zubir MZ, Holloway S, Mohd Noor N. Maggot Therapy in Wound Healing: A Systematic Review. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020;17(17):6103. Published 2020 Aug 21. doi:10.3390/ijerph17176103</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">McCaughan, Dorothy et al. “Patients' perceptions and experiences of venous leg ulceration and their attitudes to larval therapy: an in-depth qualitative study.” Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy vol. 18,4 (2015): 527-41. doi:10.1111/hex.12053</span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Summarized by John Spartz, MS4 | Edited by Erik Verzemnieks, MD</span></em></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Emergency Medi