What is subacute necrotizing fasciitis? A proposed clinical diagnostic criteria

Subacute necrotizing fasciitis is a poorly defined clinical entity. Its very existence has been the subject of much controversy. While rarely reported, subacute forms of necrotizing fasciitis have been documented in the literature by many authors. This paper highlights some recently reported cases in the literature that clearly shows that subacute forms of necrotizing fasciitis indeed exist and may in fact be under-reported because of the lack of awareness and a consistent diagnostic criteria.

A Medline search was performed with the following keyword; necrotizing fasciitis, subacute, variant and indolent.

Majority of reported cases did not give sufficient information to satisfy the reviewer that these cases were indeed subacute forms of necrotizing fasciitis. We identified three cases of subacute necrotizing fasciitis that clearly are subacute cases and analysed their clinical presentation. A diagnostic criterion for defining subacute necrotizing fasciitis was proposed based on these cases and the authors' clinical experiences.

This proposed diagnostic criterion serves to facilitate future reporting and documentation of this condition. The clinical significance and implication of this are discussed.