2.1. Participants
ulcer, cellulitis, primary venous ulcers, dementia, necrotic, infection, malignant ulceration, chronic venous diseases, arterial disease, primary venous ulcer
VENOUS INSUFFICIENCY, ULCER, CELLULITIS, RECRUITMENT, DIABETIC FOOT, PERIPHERAL VASCULAR DISEASE (PVD), NECROTIC, SLOUGH, INFECTION, RHEUMATOID VASCULITIS, BLIND, ARTERIAL DISEASE
The study was a three-arm, randomized controlled trial that was carried out on sixty patients (male and female) who had grade two primary venous ulcers, according to the venous clinical severity score. Patients were eligible for inclusion in the study if they had primary venous ulcers in the presence of venous insufficiency, as diagnosed by the site’s lead clinician and confirmed by clinical assessment and/or duplex ultrasound, in accordance with clinical practice guidelines by the Society for Vascular Surgery and the American Venous Forum [The patients included in this study were diagnosed with a grade 2 primary venous ulcer, according to the venous clinical severity score, which is made up of 10 features that are graded on a 4-point scale (absence (0), mild (1), moderate (2), and severe (3)). It has been demonstrated to be beneficial in assessing treatment responses in chronic venous diseases and is recommended for routine clinical usage in the clinical practice guideline [Following the recruitment of the eligible patients, we randomly assigned the participants using a block randomization approach, according to a preset ratio of 1:1:1 block randomization approach. The participants were divided into three assigned groups (PEMF + PRE, PEMF, or control) in sequence. Participants, outcome evaluators, and data analysts were blind to the research participants’ group assignment. The following participants were excluded: peripheral vascular disease (PVD), arterial disease by ankle brachial pressure index (ABPI < 0.8), VLUs with infection, or cellulitis symptoms, as well as VLUs with necrotic tissue or slough or having more than one ulcer. Other ulcer types, included malignant ulceration, diabetic foot, and rheumatoid vasculitis; corticosteroid use; patients with dementia or who were disoriented; patients who had undertaken another physical therapy modality for ulcer healing. 