title: Gender does not affect the prognosis of Fournier's gangrene: a case-matched study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Female gender is accepted as a poor prognostic factor for Fournier's gangrene (FG). However, there is a paucity of data in the literature regarding this matter. This case-matched study was designed to investigate the impact of gender on outcomes of FG.
  
  
  METHODS
  Study patient data were retrieved from 120-patient, prospectively maintained database. Thirty-two female patients with FG were case-matched to 32 male patients based on symptom duration (days), FG severity index score, patient age, etiology, and presence of diabetes mellitus (DM) terms. Outcomes of FG were compared between the 2 groups.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Median age was 57 years (range: 22-80 years), and 35 (54.7%) patients had DM. Patients underwent average of 3 debridement procedures (range: 1-9 debridements), and 15 (23.4%) received diverting stoma. Overall mortality rate was 28.1% (18 of 64 patients). Female gender was associated with widespread disease (p=0.009), increased need for consecutive debridements (p=0.005), prolonged length of intensive care unit stay (p=0.035), and increased requirement for split-thickness skin graft reconstruction (p=0.040). However, mortality rates were comparable between genders (p=0.264).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  FG is often more extensive in females and seems to be associated with anatomical features of female pelvis. However, female gender is not a factor affecting prognosis of patients with FG.
authors.forename: Pınar
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sarkut
authors.forename: Özgen
authors.initials: Ö
authors.lastname: Işık
authors.affiliation: Department of General Surgery, Uludağ University Faculty of Medicine, Bursa-Turkey. drozturk@uludag.edu.tr.
authors.forename: Ersin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Öztürk
authors.forename: Barış
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gülcü
authors.forename: İlker
authors.initials: İ
authors.lastname: Ercan
authors.forename: Tuncay
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yılmazlar
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003646:Debridement; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000150:complications; D005260:Female; D018934:Fournier Gangrene / Q000150:complications / Q000401:mortality* / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D007362:Intensive Care Units; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D011379:Prognosis; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012737:Sex Factors; D014421:Turkey; D055815:Young Adult