Summary

Phlycten syndrome was described as a traumatic surgical syndrome of the lower limbs, beginning as streptococcal cellulitis and progressing to necrotizing edema in individuals with starvation-induced hypoalbuminemia and electrolyte imbalance. Independently documented by three physicians during their imprisonment in Nazi concentration camps in World War II, the syndrome also developed when edematous, emaciated prisoners were flogged, causing rapid progression to gangrene and sepsis.