Fournier's gangrene: Five years' experience from a single center in Turkey

Abstract

Background: Is the present study aims to analyze demographic, clinical and surgical data of all patients with FG (Fournier's gangrene) admitted to a tertiary healthcare hospital in the largest city of Turkey.

Methods: This study included 35 patients with Fournier's gangrene, who were followed by the General Surgery, Plastic Surgery, and Urology Departments of Istanbul University Cerrahpaşa Faculty of Medicine from January 2010 to January 2015. Demographic and clinical data, including gender, age, length of stay at the hospital, the underlying cause(s), number of debridement, predisposing factors, and surgical reconstructive data over 10 years were assessed and analyzed retrospectively.

Results: The mean age of the 35 patients was 58.14±12.71 years. Diabetes mellitus was present in 20 of the 35 (57.1%) patients. Twelve of the patients (34.2%) were hospitalized in the intensive care unit (ICU). Length of stay in the ICU was found to be significantly influenced by age, hematocrit level, FGSI and UFGSI (p=0.013, p=0.030 p=0.025 and p=0.002, respectively).

Conclusion: Fournier's gangrene is a fulminant infection with a high mortality rate. Physical examination and anamnesis are quite important for the diagnosis of FG. DM is the most common comorbidity. Age, hematocrit level, FGSI and UFGSI scores affect the patients' length of stay in the ICU.