Antimicrobials are routinely used in the treatment of chronic and problematic wounds. Despite the on-going increase in numbers and types of products, well-designed clinical trials that support their efficacy are limited. Antimicrobial products are applied with understanding of their mechanisms of action and role in wound repair. This manuscript reviews the major categories of products on the market, providing the clinician with information on the different types of products and their purported effect on wounds. A new product containing polyhexamethylene biguanide is described in greater detail with relevant case presentations and cost data. This new product does not appear to have any known cytotoxicity in the dressing configuration and may be applied to a wide range of wounds.

The rodent bipedicle flap has been used in numerous permutations as a model of ischemia and to generate a compromised tissue bed. In this study 24 rats were used to investigate skin perfusion over time along the length of 4 distinct bipedicle flap designs—2 oriented cranial-caudally and 2 transverse. Traditional rectangular flaps were evaluated as well as unique elliptical geometries designed to maximize the area of the resulting ischemic bed. Perfusion was assessed by scanning laser Doppler and intravascular dye penetration. In all models, an initially ischemic bed as measured by Doppler re-established basal perfusion rates within 2–4 days and went on to produce a hyperemic bed with perfusion levels well above baseline. Reduced perfusion areas visualized by fluorescein dye penetration completely resolved in 55% of flaps within 2 days, and 68% within 4 days. This study underscores the difficulty in developing a representative model of chronic ischemia in young healthy rats as well as t

Wound debridement for the removal of necrotic tissue is a crucial step in wound management. Enzymatic wound debridement is one example of a method currently used that removes necrotic tissue with proteases and offers selectivity without affecting healthy adjacent tissue. Proteolytic enzymes for wound debridement are commercially available as ointments. The authors previously proposed and demonstrated feasibility on small lab animals—an alternative mode of delivery of proteolytic enzymes for wound debridement with continuous streaming of protease solutions. The present study describes the impact of streaming of papain solutions, fortified by the incorporation of hypertonic agents, onto an experimental larger chronic wound model in pigs. Debridement of approximately half of the necrotic tissue mass was achieved within 6 to 11 h of streaming of papain solutions onto these experimental wounds. No adverse effects or noticeable morphological changes to the wound surface or its immediate sur

Pressure ulcers are a serious and debilitating condition treated in all care settings and have a significant impact on both patients and healthcare resources. The objective of this study was to estimate overall treatment costs to the Spanish healthcare system by using a bottom-up costing approach. This study demonstrates that the cost to heal a pressure ulcer increases substantially with the severity of the ulcer, ranging from €24 ([$32.16], Grade I) to €6802 ([$9115], Grade IV) for patients treated in hospitals. Ulcer severity increases overall costs because the time to heal is longer and the incidence of complications is higher in more severe cases. The total cost of pressure ulcer treatment in Spain is approximately €461 million ([$618 million], roughly 5% of total annual healthcare expenditure). Of this, 15% represents the cost of dressings and other materials, while 19% represents the cost of nursing time, and 45% represents the cost of ulcer-related hospital stays.