Superficially, longer, intermittent ozone theraphy in the treatment of the chronic, infected wounds.

Background. Ozone therapy - i.e. the treatment of patients by a mixture of oxygen and ozone - has been used for many years as a method ancillary to basic treatment, especially in those cases in which traditional treatment methods do not give satisfactory results, e.g. skin loss in non-healing wounds, ulcers, pressure sores, fistulae, etc. Material and methods. In the Department of Phisiotherapy of the Medical Faculty and the Department of the Orthopedics and Traumatology of the Locomotor System at the Medical University of Warsaw in the period from January 2001 until November 2002, 23 patients with heavy,chronic, antibiotic resistants septic complications after trauma, surgical procedures and secundary skin infetions were treated with ozone. The ozone therapy was administered using an authorial technique of superficially, longer, intermittent ozone application. Results. In the wounds of the all experienced patients the inhibition of septic processes and wound healing was much faster than normal. Conclusions. Our data confirm the advantages wich result from the technique of superficially, longer, intermittent ozone theraphy in combined treatment for septic complications in the soft tissue, especially in the locomotor system. These technique makes posttraumatic infections and promotes quicker healing of post-surgical and post-traumal complications - chronic septic infections. This method also lowers the cost of antibiotic therapy and is sometimes the only available auxiliary technique to support surgical procedures.