Pattern and outcome of management of Fournier's gangrene in a resource-constraint setting

• Published in: Urology Annals
• Main Authors: Ngwobia Peter Agwu, Abubakar Sadiq Muhammad, Abdulwahab-Ahmed Abdullahi, Bello Bashir, Jacob Ndas Legbo, Ismaila Arzika Mungadi
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications 2020-01-01
• Subjects: fournier's gangrene; fournier's gangrene severity index; mortality; necrotizing fasciitis; predisposing factors; uludag fournier's gangrene severity index
• Online Access: http://www.urologyannals.com/article.asp?issn=0974-7796;year=2020;volume=12;issue=3;spage=248;epage=253;aulast=Agwu
• ISSN: 0974-7796; 0974-7834

Introduction: Fournier's gangrene (FG) is a necrotizing fasciitis of the external genitalia and perineum but may involve upper thigh and anterior abdominal wall. Patients and Methods: This is a retrospective study of 47 patients managed for FG at Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital from January 2001 to June 2017. Data were entered into a semi-structured pro forma and analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Results: The mean age of the patients was 42.7 ± 19.4 years, with age range of 7 weeks to 72 years. All the patients were male. The patients had underlying urologic conditions in 27.6%, 15.0% were postoperative, 4.2% had anorectal diseases, 10.6% had medical conditions, and 42.6% were idiopathic. After resuscitation, all the patients had serial debridement, Hypertonic saline bath, broad spectrum antibiotics and wound dressing. The wound healed by secondary intention in 34.0% and 32.3% of the patients had wound closure ± skin graft. The treatment was successful in 68.0% of the patients, 15.0% left against medical advice, and 17.0% died of severe sepsis. Conclusion: FG mainly affects men with existing urologic conditions in our environment. Aggressive debridement, hypertonic saline sitz bath, broad-spectrum antibiotics, and appropriate wound care are associated with good outcome.