Diagnosis
Gangrene is usually a so-called clinical diagnosis. This means that physicians can make the diagnosis after a detailed inspection and physical examination. In most cases a gangrene is even a gaze diagnosis, which means that only a short glance is necessary to make a suspected diagnosis. In addition, a smear of the gangrene is usually taken and microbiologically examined for bacteria.
Associated symptoms
Accompanying symptoms of gangrene are mainly pain and foul-smelling, putrid odor. Externally, a Gangrene appears as black-greenish discolored, shrunken and sore. A Gangrene can be either dry or moist.A wet gangrene also has a very foul-smelling, putrid, repulsive odor, which indicates an infection with bacteria and tends to spread rapidly.
Pain occurs mainly in gangrene of the internal organs and in suddenly occurring oxygen deficiency. In addition, pale coloration of the respective extremity and cold skin can occur. Emotional disturbances and muscle weaknesses are also frequently observed.
The latter symptoms occur mainly in diabetics and smokers and have usually been present for a long time and are therefore hardly noticed. Whether and how much pain occurs during gangrene depends mainly on how suddenly it occurs. Gangrene of the internal organs is usually always accompanied by strong, cramp-like pain.
If this pain suddenly stops, it is possible that the organ has burst and an emergency room should be visited as soon as possible. Gangrene of the skin, which is caused by a sudden oxygen deficiency, is accompanied by very severe pain and is usually not overlooked for this reason. Diabetics may also suffer long-term damage to small nerves, which can greatly reduce or even completely prevent the pain and can lead to gangrene being overlooked.
Treatment
Gangrene should be treated as soon as possible. The earlier a gangrene is detected, the better the result of the therapy. One of the reasons for this is the immigration of bacteria, which can be prevented by a quick therapy.
The doctor will take a smear as part of the examination to test whether, and if so, which bacteria are present. However, since such a microbiological result usually takes about two days, a broadly effective antibiotic therapy is started before if a bacterial infection is suspected. If possible, a so-called “necrectomy” is also performed.
During this procedure, the dead tissue is surgically removed. If this is not possible because the infection has already spread too far or because the cause of the gangrene (e.g. reduced blood flow) cannot be treated, amputation may be necessary. In rare cases, the infection may spread into the bloodstream, making inpatient treatment necessary.
