Maggot Debridement Therapy

Otessa, BSN, RN · Feb 7, 2009

Yep, I have seen it. They were 'medical grade' maggots.

otessa

inland18mempire · Feb 7, 2009

i had a blind diabetic patient that, upon admission, had visible and lively maggots eating away at his already half-eaten toes. they munched on his rotting flesh and prevented infection and amputation. this was not prescribed, however. the maggots were a result of neglect/being blind. interestingly enough, his wife was young and healthy and she did nothing about it (he was admitted for something totally different). i've never seen maggots that were prescribed. interesting stuff, though!

Koyaanisqatsi-RN · Mar 7, 2009

I just found out about this today. This is incredible! They're even using it to treat MRSA now, which is a good thing, because I'm assuming there's no way to get resistant to maggots. :)

Chixie · Mar 7, 2009

I spent a day with the tissue viability nurse and she is really into her 'larval' therapy and she is actively trying to push it to be used more I cant wait until i get to see this therapy in place as its so different to everything else

twistedpupchaser · Mar 7, 2009

Working in ED I have found a number of Pt's with maggots due to our tropical climate. What s the best way to remove them?

I have seen Hydrogen Peroxide, Lignicaine, NS, suction or scooping with forceps used, is there a better way?

husker_rn, RN · Mar 9, 2009

Saw it used briefly at one hospital I worked at. Dressings have to be carefully changed because those maggots eventually become flies...that's why it was used briefly. Dressings came off and flies were buzzing around carrying who knows what. The maggots DO only eat dead tissue but for some patients, feeling them move around under the dressing, well lets just say it is not a pleasant experience.

beachmom · Mar 9, 2009

I worked for a doctor who used MDT. They come in containers labeled "sterile," as in non-germy. They definately turn into flies, as we found out when one of the nurses disposed of some of them in the sharps container. (Never did figure out the sense of that action.)

The therapy did work quite well. Chronic wounds have a kind of biofilm on them that prevents the body from healing the wound. Maggots debride only the bacteria and dead tissue, creating a fresh wound that the body can heal.

We had one pt. who would joke about his therapy, saying, "Don't swat any flies, they might be my friends."

The doctor had some unused, leftover maggots one time, so I asked if I could have them to show my kids. (They are sterile, you know.) After showing them, I got a bright idea. I put them in different colors of paints and then put them on paper. They wiggled all around and painted the paper in little colorful streaks. I gave it to my doctor, and he was very impressed. He has probably the only painting in the world painted by maggots.

The Discovery Channel came to his office a few years ago and filmed him doing MDT on a pt. for their Halloween special. The show was about maggot and leech therapy.

diane227, LPN, RN · Mar 11, 2009

In the ED we used to have patients come in with maggots in their wounds all the time. You were thankful of that fact because it did not smell as bad. They are very useful little critters.

mama_d, BSN, RN · Mar 11, 2009

We had a patient one time with a stage 4 on her coccyx (well, it started out on her coccyx, it had spread up her backs, across to her hips, and down her buttocks). I joked that we should round up some maggots to throw in there, since the Dakin's and Santyl obviously wasn't working. She had so much necrotic tissue that (sorry in advance here) it was like she had melted cheese dumped in there.

I would love to see larval therapy used more often...we have Blitz coming up soon, I'll have to ask our wound nurse about her view on the subject.

tuffy2 · Apr 18, 2009

HI Im in nursing school and doing a paper on maggot therapy (in a bag) biobag anyway I have everything I need for the parer excpet the impact on nursing . I am trying to find info on nurses who have or would be willing to dot the therapy if the maggots were contained. any ideas? please and thank you