Farmer in Ghana suffered from foul-smelling, swollen, lumpy, highly-vascular 8cmx5cmx1cm deep upper-back wound >30 years. Local herbal poultices and magic spells failed completely. Constant pain. Pus oozed from deep cracks in wound-bed. Patient lived several hours from clinic. Humidity always <20%. Quick healing important because of skepticism, long distance to treatment. Dressing needed to reduce pain, prevent re-infection, keep wound-bed moist despite weather and maintain good contact with wound surface during manual farming. Clinician had previously observed immediate granulation tissue formation in wounds through use of polymeric membrane dressings. Flexible dressings also reduce wound pain, aid in preventing infection, and donate moisture to dry wounds while absorbing excess drainage.

Lumpy tissue excised to below pus-filled areas over most of wound-bed. Longer-term treatment included prayer, oral antibiotics and direct wound care. Polymeric membrane wound filler applied directly to wound dead-space with extra-thick polymeric membrane dressing covering it. Changed whenever patient came to clinic, usually every two-to-four days until wound was shallow and small. Then, standard polymeric membrane dressings employed. Wound cleansing necessary only when dressings had not been changed for more than four days or were removed completely.

Pain immediately reduced and soon gone. Wound not re-infected, moisture became appropriate, granulation tissue formed quickly. Despite poor compliance, wound healed significantly in four months, decreasing to superficial series of flat lacy wounds, largest 2.0cmx2.0cm.

Standard, thick, and wound filler polymeric membrane dressings provided effective wound management for this unusual wound. Use of polymeric membrane dressings controlled pain and infection, kept wound-bed moist and usually eliminated necessity of wound cleansing.

*PolyMem^® Wound Dressing, PolyMem Max^® Wound Dressing, PolyMem Wic^® Wound Filler, Ferris Mfg Corp