3. Wound Aetiologies, Patient Characteristics, and Healthcare Settings Amenable to Maggot Therapy

It is important for healthcare practitioners to understand when to use maggot therapy. This chapter explains the general factors that determine the choice of wound treatment and how they apply to maggot therapy: i) the wound characteristics, ii) the patient characteristics, iii) the environment, iv) the available resources, and v) the specific characteristics of each available treatment modality. Beyond the regular healthcare setting, maggot therapy can make a significant contribution to the treatment of people with wounds in compromised healthcare settings such as in times of disaster and armed conflict, in underserved populations, or in palliative care.