To treat an ischemic ulcer, blood flow to your legs needs to be restored. You may need to take medicine. In some cases, you may need surgery.
Blood flow needs to be restored. Not just ideally improved.
Everything else is wound care, not treatment of the cause. Always keep the wound clean and bandaged to prevent infection. Change the dressing as often as your provider says. Keep the dressing and the skin around it dry. Clean the wound thoroughly before applying a dressing. This is good wound care, but on its own it doesn’t treat the cause.
The reason is how the wound forms. Narrowed arteries prevent a healthy supply of blood from flowing to the legs, so the tissues don’t get enough nutrients and oxygen. The lack of nutrients causes cells to die, damaging the tissue. And damaged tissue that doesn’t get enough blood flow tends to heal more slowly. A wound made by too little blood arriving does not resolve while too little blood is still arriving.
Short of a procedure, if you have a wound, these steps can improve blood flow and aid healing: quit smoking, because smoking can lead to narrowed arteries; keep blood sugar under control if you have diabetes; exercise as much as you can, because staying active can help with blood flow; eat healthy foods and get plenty of sleep; lose weight if you are overweight; and manage blood pressure and cholesterol.
These steps aim at the same target as the medicine and the surgery: better blood flow.
There’s also one thing not to do, for the same reason: do not wear compression stockings or wraps unless told to by your provider. These may restrict blood flow.
