An unusual presentation of immersion foot

Abstract

We report a case of “green foot” in a child with a plaster cast applied for a fractured metatarsal who subsequently re-presented with circulatory compromise. The foot was green and smelly and profusePseudomonas aeruginosawas cultured. The infection cleared with simple exposure to air. Perhaps this diagnosis should be considered in patients presenting with circulatory compromise in a cast as severe infection can result in amputation.

Immersion Foot: A Case Report

“…Specifically, times of immobilization, falls, and periods of altered mental status have been associated with severe cases of immersion foot (commonly called ''trench foot'') (2,3). There have been cases in children where immersion foot was associated with both plaster casts and hip spica casts that became damp from sweating (4,5). Patients with erythromelalgia have been reported to develop immersion foot after using extreme cooling measures (such as fans, ice, and cold water) to relieve symptoms (6).…”

Trench Foot: The Medical Response in the First World War 1914–18

“…This condition, now renamed ''immersion foot'' 1,2 or ''nonfreezing cold injury'' (NFCI), 3 is still responsible for problems in soldiers, 4 such as in the recent Falklands War. 3 It is also to blame for disease in some rare cases, such as a child wearing a plaster cast, 5 the collapsed elderly, 6 and arctic explorers. 7 A New Disease?…”

Immersion Foot Syndrome in 6 Equids Exposed to Hurricane Floodwaters

“…10,13,20 Immersion foot syndrome has also been reported in elderly patients, in a hiker with prolonged exposure to wet conditions, and with Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection in a child with a foot cast. 9,15,17 Various flood-related injuries have been described in horses, including integumentary injuries, 11 but immersion foot syndrome has not been reported in the veterinary literature. Here we describe a series of a cases resembling immersion foot syndrome in 6 equids exposed to floodwaters following Hurricane Harvey.…”