Compression therapy reduces recurrent leg cellulitis, finds NEJM study

The key facts in the result were as follows.

ü At the time of a planned interim analysis, when 23 episodes of cellulitis had occurred, 6 participants (15%) in the compression group and 17 (40%) in the control group had had an episode of cellulitis.

ü A total of 3 participants (7%) in the compression group and 6 (14%) in the control group were hospitalized for cellulitis (hazard ratio, 0.38; 95% CI, 0.09 to 1.59).

ü Most quality-of-life outcomes did not differ between the two groups.

ü No adverse events occurred during the trial.

The standard treatment for chronic edema includes compression therapy and skin care. Compression bandaging can be used to reduce edema in a limb, and daily wear of compression garments is used to control edema. There is a consensus that in addition to antibiotic prescription, compression to manage edema should be an adjuvant treatment for patients with chronic edema who are experiencing cellulitis recurrence.

"In this small, single-center, nonblinded trial involving patients with chronic edema of the leg and cellulitis, compression therapy resulted in a lower incidence of recurrence of cellulitis than conservative treatment." said the authors.

Primary  source :New England Journal of Medicine.

For further reference log on to:

N Engl J Med 2020; 383:630-639