Clinical history of venous leg ulcers: a retrospective analysis of 352 cases

Venous leg ulcers are a frequent complication of chronic venous insufficiency and are often associated with long disease duration and a high rate of recurrence. Analysis of their the clinical history of venous leg ulcers is essential for optimizing therapeutic strategies and improving patient outcomes.

The aim of this study was to analyse the chronicity of venous leg ulcers based on the clinical history of patients treated at a specialized outpatient clinic.

This retrospective analysis included patients treated between 2020 and 2023 with a diagnosis of I83.0 or I83.2 according to ICD-10. Of the initial 672 patients registered, 352 met the inclusion criteria: complete clinical documentation from the first visit and a normal ankle-brachial index (ABI 0.9-1.3). Patients with incomplete documentation or an abnormal ABI were excluded.

Of the 352 patients, 104 (29.5%) were under 60 years of age at the time of admission to the clinic. Among them, 8 men were under 40 years of age and 18 women were under 50 years of age. Bilateral ulcers were present in 11 patients (7 women, 4 men). Ulcers were more common on the left leg (52.6%). The longest duration of a single ulcer was 54 years. In 26.9% of patients, the current ulcer had been present for 10 to 60 years. The clinical history showed a total of 522 ulcer recurrences, ranging from 1 to 9 per patient. On average, every second patient experienced at least one recurrence during their lifetime.

A detailed analysis of the clinical history of ulcers can provide a better understanding of the course of the disease, support therapeutic decisions, and serve to assess the effectiveness of treatment methods.