ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: Mortality after chronic wounds is high. Thus, proper and effective therapy is of critical importance. Adult mammalian skin cannot regenerate spontaneously. It heals under scar formation in a process of repair. In general, wound closure is achieved through a combination of contraction, scar formation, and regeneration. To enhance wound healing, research groups are continuously inventing and evaluating novel skin replacement products. A single application of a new gelatin-collagen nonwoven accelerates wound closure of full-thickness skin defects. Therefore, the authors' objective was to evaluate the effect of a higher application frequency of the nonwoven on wound closure in a minipig model.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: Four full-thickness skin defects were created surgically on the dorsum of 12 Gottingen minipigs. Next, 3 wounds were treated randomly with a novel gelatin-collagen nonwoven in different thicknesses, while the fourth wound was left untreated and served as the control wound. Moreover, 6 minipigs achieved multiple applications of the wound dressing. During the experimental period of 21 days, a close-up photographic documentation was performed. Finally, the areas of the initial wounds were excised and examined histologically.
RESULTS: More frequent application of the nonwoven achieved accelerated wound healing and better epidermis quality compared with a single application. Mean time until wound closure of all wounds treated with a multiple application of the nonwoven was 11.0 (+/- 1.2) days, compared with a single application of the nonwoven with 12.4 (+/- 1.26) days and control wounds with 13.5 (+/- 1.19) days. Furthermore, the epidermal thickness of all wounds treated with multiple applications of the nonwoven was increased by 10.67 [mu]m (31.89 +/- 8.86 [mu]m, P = .0007) compared with a single application of the nonwoven and by 6.53 [mu]m (27.75 +/- 7.24 [mu]m, P = .0435) compared with the control group.
CONCLUSIONS: Multiple applications of the gelatin-collagen nonwoven may be an appropriate treatment for chronic wounds leading to a fast wound closure through a combination of contraction and re-epithelialization.