Diabetic foot ulcers and venous leg ulcers are wounds in the foot and leg, respectively. Diabetic foot ulcers are a common complication for people who have diabetes mellitus that is difficult to manage and can lead to amputation in the lower limb. Venous leg ulcers usually occur when there is underlying venous reflux or obstruction and the veins do not circulate blood properly. This can eventually lead to blood plasma leaking into the skin tissue, causing inflammation, edema, dermatitis, and ulceration.

As part of standard comprehensive wound care, diabetic foot ulcers and venous leg ulcers are often treated with dressings, which are products with specific properties that promote wound healing. However, there may be times when ulcers do not heal in a timely manner despite standard wound care. This can cause pain and hamper a patient’s quality of life. In addition, the use of health care services and costs of treatment for these ulcers are important and challenging issues for the health care system. Therefore, there is a need to improve the healing process of these ulcers by appropriately managing the wound and using dressings that are more effective at healing ulcers.

This health technology assessment looked at how safe, effective, and cost-effective sucrose octasulfate–impregnated dressings are for adults with difficult-to-heal noninfected diabetic foot ulcers and difficult-to-heal noninfected venous leg ulcers. It also looked at the budget impact of publicly funding sucrose octasulfate–impregnated dressings and at the experiences, preferences, and values of people with difficult-to-heal noninfected diabetic foot ulcers and difficult-to-heal noninfected venous leg ulcers.