Treatment of Chronic Osteomyelitis

Chronic osteomyelitis is a persistent infection of bone tissue that can lead to bone marrow destruction, bone necrosis, periosteal perforation, and cutaneous ulcers. Surgical intervention may include debridement of the infected focus, sequestrectomy (removal of necrotic bone), and continuous irrigation. In patients with severe soft-tissue defects and deep, funnel-shaped wounds, pedicled muscle flaps should be employed to obliterate dead space. The management of chronic suppurative osteomyelitis typically involves a combined surgical and medical approach—namely, optimizing systemic condition, controlling infection, and performing definitive surgical treatment.