Maggots: Antimicrobial Stewards and Life Savers
Maggots have been used in wound care for centuries. Their larvae secrete digestive enzymes and antimicrobial compounds that reduce the bacterial load within a wound and promote the growth of new, healthy tissue. We will discuss a series of patients with complex, nonhealing and life-threatening sacra...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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American College of Physicians
2024-01-01
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| Series: | Annals of Internal Medicine: Clinical Cases |
| Online Access: | https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/aimcc.2023.0693 |
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| _version_ | 1850202534193397760 |
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| author | Caitlin Trottier Shamsuddin Anwar Lisa Baxter Natalie Nierenberg |
| author_facet | Caitlin Trottier Shamsuddin Anwar Lisa Baxter Natalie Nierenberg |
| author_sort | Caitlin Trottier |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Maggots have been used in wound care for centuries. Their larvae secrete digestive enzymes and antimicrobial compounds that reduce the bacterial load within a wound and promote the growth of new, healthy tissue. We will discuss a series of patients with complex, nonhealing and life-threatening sacral wounds who developed multidrug-resistant sacral osteomyelitis. These wounds had failed to respond to standard and advanced strategies. Medicinal maggots were offered as a last-ditch effort in each case. In addition to saving the patients’ lives, these maggots demonstrated their underappreciated and underused role as antimicrobial stewards. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-101776debd5047e2a7fac9d15a827894 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2767-7664 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-01-01 |
| publisher | American College of Physicians |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Annals of Internal Medicine: Clinical Cases |
| spelling | doaj-art-101776debd5047e2a7fac9d15a8278942025-08-20T02:11:45ZengAmerican College of PhysiciansAnnals of Internal Medicine: Clinical Cases2767-76642024-01-013110.7326/aimcc.2023.0693Maggots: Antimicrobial Stewards and Life SaversCaitlin Trottier0Shamsuddin Anwar1Lisa Baxter2Natalie Nierenberg31Division of Infectious Diseases and Geographic Medicine, Tufts Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts1Division of Infectious Diseases and Geographic Medicine, Tufts Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts2Wound Care, Tufts Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts2Wound Care, Tufts Medical Center, Boston, MassachusettsMaggots have been used in wound care for centuries. Their larvae secrete digestive enzymes and antimicrobial compounds that reduce the bacterial load within a wound and promote the growth of new, healthy tissue. We will discuss a series of patients with complex, nonhealing and life-threatening sacral wounds who developed multidrug-resistant sacral osteomyelitis. These wounds had failed to respond to standard and advanced strategies. Medicinal maggots were offered as a last-ditch effort in each case. In addition to saving the patients’ lives, these maggots demonstrated their underappreciated and underused role as antimicrobial stewards.https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/aimcc.2023.0693 |
| spellingShingle | Caitlin Trottier Shamsuddin Anwar Lisa Baxter Natalie Nierenberg Maggots: Antimicrobial Stewards and Life Savers Annals of Internal Medicine: Clinical Cases |
| title | Maggots: Antimicrobial Stewards and Life Savers |
| title_full | Maggots: Antimicrobial Stewards and Life Savers |
| title_fullStr | Maggots: Antimicrobial Stewards and Life Savers |
| title_full_unstemmed | Maggots: Antimicrobial Stewards and Life Savers |
| title_short | Maggots: Antimicrobial Stewards and Life Savers |
| title_sort | maggots antimicrobial stewards and life savers |
| url | https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/10.7326/aimcc.2023.0693 |
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