BACKGROUND:Among the chronic leg ulcers, venous ulcers are the most common and constitute a major burden to public health. Despite all technology available, some patients do not respond to established treatments. In our study, carboxymethylcellulose was tested in the treatment of refractory chronic venous ulcers.OBJECTIVE:To evaluate the efficacy of carboxymethylcellulose 20% on the healing of chronic venous ulcers refractory to conventional treatments.METHODS:This is an analytical, pre-experimental study. Thirty patients were included with refractory venous ulcers, and applied dressings with carboxymethylcellulose 20% for 20 weeks. The analysis was based on measurement of the area of ulcers, performed at the first visit and after the end of the treatment.RESULTS:There was a reduction of 3.9 cm2 of lesion area (p=0.0001), corresponding to 38.8% (p=0.0001). There was no interruption of treatment and no increase in lesion area in any patient.CONCLUSIONS:Carboxymethylcellulose 20% represents a low cost and effective therapeutic alternative for the treatment of refractory chronic venous ulcers. However, controlled studies are necessary to prove its efficacy.