Leg Ulcer Treatment Revolution – cure for venous leg ulcers

Leg Ulcer Treatment Revolution – by Prof Mark Whiteley

Please be aware that some of the images on this blog are of a graphic nature.

“Leg ulcer treatment revolution”  is a new book that has been published this week. It has been written by Prof Mark Whiteley, founder of The Whiteley Clinic.

This book highlights the fact that most venous leg ulcers can now be permanently cured. Most of these cures are achieved using only local anaesthetic treatments.

Indeed, the average time from first procedure to complete cure using the Whiteley Protocol is 18 weeks. When you consider that many patients have leg ulcers treated with compression for years, the difference is astounding.

Getting a leg ulcer cured increases quality-of-life for the patient as well as all of their family, friends and carers.

Venous leg ulcers in the UK.

In the UK, it is thought that about 500,000 people suffer from recurrent venous leg ulcers. At any one time, it is thought that about 125,000 people have active leg ulcers. The others are temporarily healed because they have had compression dressings.

However, as soon as those compression dressings are removed, the ulcer is at risk of recurring. This is because the ulcers are caused by underlying vein problems. If these vein problems are treated, then the ulcers heal naturally without the need for any compression or dressings in the majority of cases. We have shown this at The Whiteley Clinic in our own 12 year audit. 85% of our patients with long-term venous leg ulcers were cured by our approach, 52% never needing any compression again.

“Leg ulcer treatment revolution” explains the three different sorts of venous disease that cause venous leg ulcers. It also explains which ones can be treated and the small number of patients who cannot be cured.

Leg ulcer cure by The Whiteley Protocol – explained in book Leg Ulcer Treatment Revolution

NICE clinical guidelines for venous leg ulcers

Amongst those of us who do research, it has been known since the 1990s that most venous leg ulcers are due to venous reflux. In most cases, venous reflux can be cured by varicose vein type surgery.

In July 2013, the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published clinical guidelines CG 168 that said that anyone with a venous leg ulcer, even if healed, should be referred to a “vascular service”.

The definition of a vascular service is exactly what the The Whiteley Clinic had set up over 15 years ago. This is a group of medical and nursing professionals working with vascular technologists who can perform specialist venous duplex ultrasound of the veins. In addition, we are able to offer any sort of endovenous surgery. As there is increasing proof that perforating veins need to be treated as well as other veins for curing leg ulcers, it is essential that doctors treating venous leg ulcers are able to perform the TRLOP technique. This was invented by Mark Whiteley and Judy Holdstock in 2001.

Mark Whiteley wrote “leg ulcer treatment revolution”  in simple English and with lots of diagrams to try and help patients, their carers and families understand how leg ulcers occur and how they can now be treated. There is enough science in the book to also be of interest to any nurse or doctor treating patients with venous leg ulcers.

Finally, to patients who were not referred and ended up with years of complications from an healed venous leg ulcers have ended up suing their doctors and nurses. These cases are discussed and highlighted in the book.

If you have any questions about leg ulcers or this book, please contact us through the Whiteley clinics contact page.