Venous ulcers are a common chronic problem in many countries especially in Northern Europe and USA. The overall prevalence of this condition is 1% rising to 3% in the over 65 years of age. Over the last 25 years, there have been many developments applicable to its diagnosis and treatment. These advances, notwithstanding healing response and recurrence, are variable, and the venous ulcer continues to be a clinical challenge. The pathogenesis of venous ulcers is unrelieved or ambulatory venous hypertension resulting mostly from deep venous thrombosis leading to venous incompetence, lipodermatosclerosis, leucocyte plugging of the capillaries, tissue hypoxia and microvascular dysfunction. It is not known what initiates venous ulcers. Triggers vary from trauma of the lower extremity to scratching to relieve itchy skin over the ankle region. Venous ulcers can be painful, and this condition presents an increasing burden of care. A systematic analysis of the role of technology used for diagnosis and management strongly supports the use of compression as a mainstay of standardised care. It further shows good evidence for the potential of some treatment procedures to accelerate healing. This article reviews the pathogenetic mechanisms, current diagnostic methods and standard care and its limitations.

Objective: Compartment syndrome (CS) is serious complication following revascularization of acute limb ischemia (ALI). However, predictive factors associated with CS remain unclear. This study aimed to identify these predictive factors. Materials and Methods: Twenty-two patients who presented with non-traumatic ALI between November 2013 and October 2015 were enrolled and monitored for CS in this prospective cohort study. Predictive factors were compared between the CS and non-CS groups. Results: There were 5 patients in the CS group and 17 patients in the non-CS group. Four predictive factors were associated with CS: (1) inadequate backflow (80% and 12% in the CS and non-CS groups, respectively; P=.001); (2) serum creatine kinase (CK) level (20,683 U/L and 911 U/L in the CS and non-CS groups, respectively; P<.001); (3) positive fluid balance after admission (4,324 mL and 1,223 mL in the CS and non-CS groups, respectively; P<.001); and (4) Rutherford category IIB (100% and 18% in the CS and non-CS groups, respectively; P=.0002). Conclusion: Inadequate backflow, high serum CK level, positive fluid balance, and advanced-stage ALI were associated with CS. This information may be useful in identification of high-risk patients for CS prevention and in early detection of CS following the revascularization procedure.