A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF ULCER HEALING WITH SILVER FIX FOAM DRESSING AND REGULAR BETADINE DRESSING

Abstract

BACKGROUND An ulcer is not a serious health problem for the patient but a major health concern due to discomfort, pain, loss of workdays, and treatment cost. Several treatment modalities are available in treating ulcers based on their aetiology. In most ulcer management, povidone-iodine has been used for a very long duration with good results. On the other hand, silver, an antibacterial and anti-inammatory agent, is a newer treatment modality. In this study, we wanted to evaluate and compareAims and Objectives the healing of an ulcer in patients treated with silver x foam and betadine with regard to the progress of healing and duration, and rate of healing in both methods. This was a comparative study conducted after obtaining approval from the ethical committeeMATERIALS AND METHODS of Rangaraya Medical College and Government General Hospital, Kakinada, in the Department of General Surgery, over two years from June 2018 to May 2020 among patients suffering from non-healing ulcer who attended the general surgery outpatient department of Government General Hospital, Kakinada. The advantage of silver foam dressings is that they can be changed every 4th or 5th day when comparedRESULTS to betadine, which requires daily or alternate day dressings. Silver foam dressings show better control of infection and rate ofCONCLUSION healing when compared to povidone-iodine in the management of all patients with ulcers.