Old War Scar Revisited

Abstract

In 1828, Jean Nicholas Marjolin, a French surgeon, first described the findings of a neoplastic development arising from a burn scar, now more commonly referred to as a Marjolin's ulcer. A Marjolin's ulcer describes malignant degeneration in any chronic wound. The majority of cases arises in burn scars and are often latent for decades. Marjolin ulcers have been widely identified in post-war time injuries. These ulcers may arise in almost any anatomical location. We report a case of an 82-year-old male that presented with a painful fluctuating mass on the right arm localized to the site of an old grenade blast injury he sustained many years earlier. While the presentation of these cases may be variable, the significance of proper management of the wounds is essential to optimal patient outcomes. An aggressive course and poor prognosis is associated with Marjolin's ulcers that degenerate into squamous cell carcinoma. Early detection and aggressive treatment/management with wide local excision and prompt coverage yield the best results when treating patients with Marjolin's ulcers.

Basic Principles of Plastic Surgical Approach to Patients with High Energy Traumas

“…Buna ek olarak, akut dönem onarımlar bittikten sonra uzun dönemde de sorunlar devam edebilmektedir. Şarapnel parçalarına bağlı olarak 40 hastada uzun dönemde oluşan marjolin ülseri olgusu bildirilmiştir (18) . Bu nedenle, akut onarımların tamamlanmasını takiben uzun dönemde hastaların plastik cerrahi ya da ortopedi gibi kliniklerce takip altına alınması gerekebilmektedir.…”