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BEDSORES (Decubitus Ulcers) |
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Bedsores
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BEDSORES (Decubitus Ulcers)
They
don’t. They are allowed to happen, and lousy hospital and nursing home
food is the major culprit. No,
it’s not the mattress. It is malnutrition. I think
bedsores might better be termed “scurvy sores,” and in centuries
past, they often were. Like bleeding gums on a large scale, they are a
development of spontaneous pinpoint hemorrhaging. Pressure of brushing the
teeth, or lying on a mattress, is enough to break blood vessels grossly
weakened by a lack of vitamin C. Look into
this for yourself and see. When you do, you will note that the symptoms of
scurvy include poor healing, weak capillaries, easy bruising, open wounds
that suppurate (discharge pus), and spontaneous bleeding and internal
hemorrhage, often from very minor trauma. Such describes the development of a
bedsore. Bedsores
have been associated with necrotizing ulcerative stomatitis (severe
inflammation and destruction of soft tissue and bone). Both share a number of
symptoms, both occur in malnourished patients, and both are treatable with
nutritional supplementation. (J. A. G. Buchanan, M. Cedro, A. Mirdin, T.
Joseph, S. R. Porter, T. A. Hodgson (2006) Necrotizing stomatitis in the
developed world. Clinical and
Experimental Dermatology 31 (3), 372–374.) Pellagra,
a deficiency of niacin (vitamin B-3),
causes bedsores as well. This has been known for over one hundred years.
(Pellagra: History, Distribution, Diagnosis, Prognosis, Treatment, etc. by
Stewart Ralph Roberts, p 104. http://books.google.com/books?id=XCxQAWDWAh4C&printsec=titlepage
) Also: The
Nursing Care of Pellagra, by Lillian Cumbee. The American Journal of Nursing, Vol. 31, No. 3 (Mar., 1931), p
272-274 The cure,
the only cure, for pellagra is niacin. Not surprisingly, niacin also helps
heal bedsores. (Dtsch Gesundheitspolit. 1951 Nov 29;6(48):1388-9. [Therapy of
ulcus cruris and decubitus.] GERNAND K. PMID: 14905956) The mineral zinc also speeds healing of bedsores and similar skin problems. Even the
medically orthodox Merck Manual
says that “supplemental vitamin C and zinc may help with healing as
well.” I would recommend at least 50 mg day, and 150 would be better,
divided into three separate doses. Zinc gluconate is readily available, cheap
and well-absorbed. Vitamins
A, B-1 (thiamine), B-2 (riboflavin), and E are probably also helpful. Vitamin
A and the B-vitamins are in any multivitamin preparation. Vitamin E from
capsules may be dripped directly onto a bedsore, painlessly. The benefits are
more rapid healing, less discomfort, and reduced risk of infection and
scarring. Conservative treatment is
always best, and vitamin supplementation is about as conservative as it gets.
Remember what vitamin-discoverer Dr. Roger J. Williams said: “When in doubt, use nutrition
first.” Patients given optimally
large amounts of these nutrients will be more comfortable in days, and
although healing will take weeks, you can expect to see real improvement.
Reconstructive surgery is the last resort. Think about this: if a patient
cannot keep their normal skin well, how are they going to recover from a skin
graft? Do not subject a patient, especially an elderly patient to such pain
and trauma if you can possibly avoid it. And yes, you can possibly avoid it. But you will
not know if nutrition works until you try it. I have seen this with my
own eyes, so don’t try to tell me differently: hospitals are not trying
nutrition first. My aunt, an activist Registered Nurse, is campaigning to end
elder abuse. Good. Here is an excellent opportunity for you to join her. Don’t
let your loved one suffer from a bedsore. Demand oral and intravenous
high-potency multiple and B-complex vitamin therapy. Demand oral and
intravenous vitamin C as well. Let the hospital and
doctors tell you it is unsafe if they must. If they try to do so, they have
not read their own journals. Here is some of the evidence: “Most patients with chronic
skin ulcers suffered micronutrient status alterations, and borderline
malnutrition. Meals did not cover energy requirements, while oral supplements
covered basic micronutrient requirements and compensated for insufficient
oral energy and protein intakes, justifying their use in hospitalized elderly
patients.” Raffoul
W, Far MS, Cayeux MC, Berger MM. Nutritional status and food intake in nine
patients with chronic low-limb ulcers and pressure ulcers: importance of oral
supplements. Nutrition. 2006 Jan;22(1):82-8. “In the group treated with
ascorbic acid there was a mean reduction in pressure-sore area of 84% after
one month compared with 42.7% in the placebo group. These findings are
statistically significant (P less than 0.005) and suggest that ascorbic acid
may accelerate the healing of pressure-sores.” (See
also: Ascorbic acid and pressure sores. Br Med J. 1971 Jun 12;2(5762):604-5.) “Only patients receiving
additional arginine, vitamin C and zinc demonstrated a clinically significant
improvement in pressure ulcer healing (9.4+/-1.2 vs. 2.6+/-0.6; baseline and
week 3, respectively.” Desneves KJ, Todorovic BE, Cassar
A, Crowe TC. Treatment with supplementary arginine, vitamin C and zinc in
patients with pressure ulcers: a randomised controlled trial. Clin Nutr. 2005
Dec;24(6):979-87. “(O)ral nutritional
supplement(ation) resulted in a significant reduction in wound area and an
improvement in wound condition in patients with grade III and IV pressure
ulcers within three weeks. . . Median healing of wound area was 0.34 cm2 per
day, taking approximately two days to heal 1 cm2. . . the amount of exudate
in infected ulcers (p = 0.012) and the incidence of necrotic tissue (p =
0.001) reduced significantly.” Frías Soriano L, Lage Vázquez MA, Maristany CP, Xandri
Graupera JM, Wouters-Wesseling W, Wagenaar L. The effectiveness of oral
nutritional supplementation in the healing of pressure ulcers. J Wound Care.
2004 Sep;13(8):319-22. The RDA/DRI is not enough: “Refeeding of pressure sore
patients who often are catabolic and have increased needs for protein and
energy, should include micronutrients not only to cover recommended dietary
allowances, but sufficient to reach normal nutritional status for the
individual micronutrient.” Selvaag E, Bøhmer T, Benkestock K. Reduced serum
concentrations of riboflavine and ascorbic acid, and blood thiamine
pyrophosphate and pyridoxal-5-phosphate in geriatric patients with and
without pressure sores. J Nutr Health Aging. 2002;6(1):75-7. (Also:
Powers JS, Zimmer J, Meurer K, Manske E, Collins JC, Greene HL. Direct assay
of vitamins B1, B2, and B6 in hospitalized patients: relationship to level of
intake. JPEN J Parenter Enteral Nutr. 1993 Jul-Aug;17(4):315-6.) 1,000 mg of vitamin C is not
enough: ter Riet
G, Kessels AG, Knipschild PG. Randomized clinical trial of ascorbic acid in
the treatment of pressure ulcers. J Clin Epidemiol. 1995 Dec;48(12):1453-60. For more information on administering vitamin C by IV, and the safe
and effective use of high oral doses of all the vitamins, please use the
“Search Box” at the www.doctoryourself.com
main page. Type in “IV vitamin C” or "B vitamins" to start you off. Don’t
forget to try a topical application of aloe
vera gel, squeezed fresh from the plant’s thick leaves. It is
soothing and healing. Note:
DoctorYourself does not sell any health products, nor vitamins, nor
supplements. I have absolutely no financial connection with the health
products industry. Period.
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AN IMPORTANT NOTE: This page is not in any way offered as prescription, diagnosis nor treatment for any disease, illness, infirmity or physical condition. Any form of self-treatment or alternative health program necessarily must involve an individual's acceptance of some risk, and no one should assume otherwise. Persons needing medical care should obtain it from a physician. Consult your doctor before making any health decision. Neither the author nor the webmaster has authorized the use of their names or the use of any material contained within in connection with the sale, promotion or advertising of any product or apparatus. Single-copy reproduction for individual, non-commercial use is permitted providing no alterations of content are made, and credit is given. |
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