Conditions
Leg Ulcer
A leg ulcer definitely sounds like something we could all happily live without. And thankfully, for people under the age of 45, they are very rare. However, if you’ve made it past the grand old age of 80, the figures show that 1 in every 50 are affected by venous leg ulcers, and they are more common in people who are obese or immobile. Leg ulcers look like craters in the skin, varying in shape, colour and size. Your leg may also be painful, itchy and swollen. In many cases they are due to poor circulation in the arteries, if the values in your veins stop working or as a result of diabetes. Ulcers need to be kept clean to avoid infection whilst arterial ulcers may benefit from surgery. If the leg ulcer is caused by an underlying disease it’s important to have this treated as well.
Comments and Questions
You can share your experiences and thoughts with other Embarrassing Bodies site-users below. Comments & Questions are reviewed by moderators, but if you see anything on the site that worries you, please report it and one of our moderators will look at it as soon as possible.
Please note: Unfortunately Channel 4 cannot respond to individual inquiries. If you have any concerns, you can check out NHS Choices, but ultimately it is always best to check with a health professional.
hi my grandmother is 77 years old and she has a red mark around the bottom of her legs but 1 of her legs is quite bad as it keeps leaking fluid and sometimes it is painful when it get's warm it look's alot like a ulcer but the nurses are not quite 100% on what it could be so any advice on what to use to help clear it up will be most welcome thank you
My father had huge ulcers and was hospitalized for a very long time, eventually they did have to amputate. He ended up with one if the first cases of the strain of bacteria resistant to antibiotics, in the Ottawa, Canada valley. He has since passed away, with something unrelated. But one thing I wish we had of tried on him was 100% Tea Tree Oil soaks. I had an infection on my foot and it was bad enough that my doctor wanted me on antibiotic, immediately. instead I tried the Tea Tree oil diluted in water, within 24 hours it was unbelievable. In only a few days, it cleared up with hardly any scar whatsoever, I never took even one antibiotic. I'm not suggesting these people with such bad ulcers don't take there's, I'm just suggesting that in addition to the Medicine perhaps give this a try. I wish I had of known about it for my father.
I have an ulcer on my left leg which is causing me a horrendous amount of pain. I have not slept in my bed for a fortnight, I sleep on the sofa because as soon as I lie flat or with the leg elevated the pain starts. I am spending most of my days sleeping,becoming very depressed and unable to deal with life. My leg is being dressed twice a week by the practice nurse and she insists on trying to remove all the gunge from the ulcer before we try any healing treatment. I am on Co-codamol for the pain ( no effect) and Tramadol ( no effect) I feel I am heading for a nervous breakdown-----------can anyone help?
i to like most other people suffer from leg ulcers on both legs in my case my right leg has been ok for a great number of years but my left leg seems to break down and its depressing soul destroying but i can say that the nurses at my surgery are fantastic compassionate and understanding i always live in hope id love to take my daughter swimming etc its gonna take time im plagued with this after a dvt started all this off mrsa etc the lot.thanks for all the honest people on here i dont feel so alone.
My son has suffered the same as the comments of the other people that have wrote on here. He has had ulcers for 7 years now and at his wits end.Both legs are now infected and also his foot.He is 45 years old and the smell is horendous that he is to embarrassed to go out.I dont know what I can do to help.He was getting it treated and it seamed to be getting better, but then he moved and changed surgery`s and the treatment is not so good and it`s definatly getting worse. We live in Bournemouth and can anyone recommend a NHS consultant that could help.He has had all the compression bandages and the expensive metal ones. Thanks
i have been to my doctors and have been t old that i have leg ulcers and exma i had a panial nail to fuse my ankel a year ago and now this problem has reard its ugly head i have had antibiotices these help but as soon as ifinish them the weeping starts again and the pain is stooping me from walking and sleeping the dressings that my nurse uses end up soaking wet and green fluid seems to be leaking out i hope some one can help
Hello am hoping for some kind of answer.Am asking unbehalf of my mum.She has a scaring on the lower back of her left leg,well its more like skin discolouration,she has dark complextion but on her leg it has become jet black with dry flakes,it itches and swollen and pains her alot because of work,she has to stand for long hours.She has this problem for sometime now and doctors say she hasnt got diabetics or any ailments from scans or blood test,I dont know what else to do to help her and am very worried. I have been reading about Compression Socks online but has no real idea how good they are or even if they would help her.I desperately needs some/any kind of help or advice.
I'm a 27yr old male. When I was about 16 I slipped on black ice and fractured my right tibia. I then started to get a brown patch of skin on my right ankle (the leg I broke). I then started to get some greyish-white coloured skin. I went to see a dermatologist and they said it was 'Atrophie Blanche'. I then started to get varicose veins and then an ulcer on that foot. Then I got ulcers on my left foot. I've had a large venous ulcer on my left leg next to my ankle since Christmas. It is healing very slowly. I'm now trying Manuka Honey gel sheets. I now have one ulcer in the same please on my right leg in the middle of Atrophie Blanche and it is very sore to touch. (This is because the skin is dying). I also have a very red sore patch of skin where I thought had improved one week ago, but it had gone red and sore the week after. I'm having compression bandages on every week, for the last 2 weeks I've been getting a 4 layer bandage on both legs. It's letting my confidence down and I'm seriously fed up. I had tears in my eyes on Christmas eve because an ulcer had grown in size. I had my veins stripped to see if I don't get ulcers any more, but that didn't help. I have been off work most of this year because of the ulcer. I stand up all day at work and it doesn't help.
hi i know exactly how you feel mate ive had one on my left ankle for the last 4 yrs and my life and self esteem has gone right down the drain,i dont sleep cause o the pain,im moody all the time,in pain nomatter what i do but u get very little help once youve been seein the doctors for the time i have.
Thanks for the reply. Since writing it, I devoloped two more ulcers. I've been using Medihoney every week. I had to get a sick note 4 weeks ago because on a monday I had quite a lot of pain for two hours and I'd had enough, so I had to go home. Since being off work they showed signs of improvement two weeks ago. I stand up all day at work and being off has helped a great deal!! I have to go back to work next week, but I don't seriously want to because my ulcers will heal very slowly again. Four years is too long!! Ask your doctor for you to be referred to the dermatologist and see what they can do for you and see why it isn't healing. I'm going back to them in a few weeks to see what the underlying cause is of why I keep getting ulcers every year.
hi david like you i have had a leg ulcer for two year tried everything and it didnt heal i now see a private doctor called Jan De Freis in glasgow he has places all over and is not that expensive he helped my ulcer after four weeks it was smooth all he gave me was drops before and after food he told me you have to heal ulcers from the inside this has worked for me
Sharon What drops do you mean?
hi there i am 30 years old, but when i was 17 i had surgery on my legs to remove the varicous veins and also had a leg ulcer and had same treatment you are having. I have worn compression stockings for 13 years, its now got to a stage that i have been medically retired from work with periphal vascular disease.(PAD) ask your consultant about this. ring hospital to get appointment, gp's are a waste of time. good luck mate.
Hi Tony. Sorry to hear you have a disease. I don't have it. My blood circulation is ok. I've had 2 doppler tests this year and my pulses in my feet are fine. I was referred to a hospital 3 weeks ago. I gave up using Medihoney because it wasn't doing anything for me at all. I'm now using SilverCell. It seems to be working. I'm back at work and I have pain in my feet every day when I'm at work. It seems to wear off by 12 dinner time. Although I'm back and need the money, I would love to stay at home until my two ulcers heal.
i have had a leg ulcer for 4 years now and only every now and then it flares up-i do the usual routine of go to nurse,get it cleaned then have the compression bandage put on. i work in the frozen foods dept at work=would working there create any issues???
hi, i suffer from a condition called lipodermato sclerosis in which has caused my legs to swell 3 times the normal size ,i am a 40 year old male and i have had the condition for about 6 years, my doctor keeps giving water tabs and telling me there is no other treatment, he gave me aquious moisturiser as my leggs were getting ulcers the next morning i woke up and my skin had fell of due to cream burning my skin, i have 1 big ulcer on my leg at the bottom,,,can any body give me any advice or point me in the right direction
hi, l have just been diagnosed with the same condition after a car crash 4 yrs ago, l was told to wear compression hosiery for the rest of my life, lm 54 and that is scary ,also my leg seems to be worse now than before the hosiery.Nobody seems to have the answer as to how to cure this problem or the pain that goes with it.l thought l was the only one but reading this site has helped a bit,good luck for the future
Important Notice
The information provided on this website (including any NHS Choices medical information) is for use as information or for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical care by a qualified doctor or other qualified healthcare professional. We do not warrant that any information included within this site will meet your health or medical requirements. This Embarrassing Bodies site does not provide any medical or diagnostic services so you should always check with a health professional if you have any concerns about your health.
If you want to embed our videos in your site, read our embedding T&Cs here
