Recurrence of venous leg ulceration

Abstract

Published literature consists of a broad range of venous leg ulcer (VLU) recurrence rates. Therefore, to assess the recurrence rate of VLU a search and review of published data was performed using the MEDLINE OvidSP, EMBASE, Web-of-Science, PubMed publisher and Cochrane Library. The resulting data demonstrate VLU recurrence rates ranging from 0% at 6 months to 56% at 54 months. Two studies mention VLU recurrence at 60 months, with VLU recurrence rates of 19 and 48% respectively. Only three studies are comparable with regard to treatment and demonstrate VLU recurrence of 17, 17 and 25% at 12 months. In conclusion, this is the first study summarising high-level evidence with regard to VLU recurrence demonstrating a tendency that even after several years recurrence rates still increase. The results of this study, high recurrence rates indicate the need for new strategies after a VLU has healed.