Surgical debridement to optimise wound conditions and healing.

Different treatment strategies are available for bone, joint and soft tissue infections, including use of local antibiotics; negative pressure wound therapy; one-stage, two-stage or multi-stage revisions; or open wound therapy. All methods have one principle in common: adequate surgical debridement is the prerequisite for successful treatment of bone, joint and soft tissue infections. According to the different textures of healthy, infected or necrotic tissue, special techniques are used. In this article we will describe the clinical presentation of necrotic and non-vital tissue in skin, soft tissue and bone and appropriate techniques of debridement.