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Wound Care Treatment Options

Approximately seven million adults live with a chronic wound. A wound is considered chronic when it does not follow a normal, timely healing process. Chronic wounds can lead to the risk of infection and other complications. Common types of chronic wounds include diabetic, arterial, venous and pressure ulcers.

“Washington Regional Wound Care Clinic specializes in treating chronic wounds,” Dr. Bernadette Alberty explains. “The wounds typically will not close with conventional treatment, and we offer specialty modalities and treatments here in the wound care clinic.”

One treatment option many people may not know about involves placing the patient inside one of the clinic’s hyperbaric oxygen chambers. “It may look intimidating, but it’s a very effective treatment,” Dr. Alberty says. “Hyperbaric oxygen treatment is the process of delivering oxygen to the patient through a specially pressurized chamber. They're able to simply breathe in while the increased oxygen level in their blood enables the body’s natural healing abilities to be more effective.” Patients undergoing the treatment are able to rest and watch television until their treatment time is complete.

Dr. Alberty says the clinic also treats patients experiencing chronic swelling. “For patients with chronic swelling, we have the ability to use compression systems that are specially engineered to reduce that swelling, or edema.”

For many patients, successfully treating a chronic wound requires visiting the Washington Regional Wound Care clinic a few times each week for several weeks. If you have a wound that won’t heal on its own, Dr. Alberty suggests contacting the clinic. “If someone thought that our treatment modalities might help them, that would be something we could discuss and potentially schedule an appointment.”