You want me to put MAGGOTS WHERE?!?!?!

Now I will admit that this post is probably not for the faint of heart and I am purposely leaving out some of the more gruesome pictures/video we were shown in lecture the other day, but because medical maggots have been brought up in several classes I thought I would quickly mention them here.

Weeks one and two at school focused on wound care ... the importance of preventing them and how to help reverse their debilitating effects.  When you thing of large, decubitus ulcers (bed sores or pressure ulcers) and trying to reverse them, putting maggots on the wound might not be your first thought.  All of us were quite shocked horrified when one of our professors, a lover of large and gory wounds, shared a video with us about medical maggots.  A diabetic arrived at a clinic and who was about to lose her foot due to a large amount of tissue breakdown on her heel.  In a last ditch effort, the doctor decided to put maggots on the wound. 

Now these critters, while disgusting, can work miracles on wounds because they only eat away at the dead tissue.  When they have done their job, they are removed from the wound (sometimes a second round is needed) and the skin is able to repair itself and return to a normal state.  Who knew?!?!