The Comparative Study of Efficiency of Hyaluronic Acid Based Dressings and Atraumatic Dressings in Local Treatment of Partial-Thickness Burns

Abstract

Partial-thickness burns (II degree according to ICD 10) remain a significant problem in combustiology. New approaches to the treatment of burn patients are associated with a group of modern dressings or skin substitutes based on natural biopolymers. Hyaluronic acid (HA) based polymers which is a natural component of the extracellular matrix, are promising.Aims of study. А comparative study of the effectiveness of an atraumatic wound dressing based on a polyamide mesh and hyaluronic acid based wound dressings in the treatment of partial-thickness burns.Material and methods. The work is based on the observation of 215 patients who were hospitalized in the Burn Department of the Far Eastern Medical Center in 2014–2018. All patients underwent surgical treatment of burn wounds - dermabrasion on days 2–3. To close of the postoperative wound, two types of dressings were used: based on hyaluronic acid (HA), n=61 and atraumatic dressings (AD), n=154. The effectiveness of treatment was assessed in terms of the healing time of burns, the severity of the general and local inflammatory response, and the quality of the restored skin.Results. In the treatment with HA based dressings, burns healed five days faster; the wound healing time up to 21 days was noted in 90.2% of cases, with the use of AD — only in 57.1% of cases. HA dressings required replacement half as often as AD. With the use of HA dressings, the local and general inflammatory response to the burn wound developed less frequently and was managed faster. Resistant microorganisms and colonies with abundant growth, were found in the main group one and a half times less often than in the comparison group. When using HA dressings, the restored skin is much less likely to suffer from hypertrophy and scarring.Conclusions. Treatment with HA-based wound dressings in patients with partial-thickness burns are more effective than treatment with traditional atraumatic dressing. Biopolymer skin substitutes is optimal for the treatment of partial-thickness burns in the postoperative period, since the frequency of dressings and the likelihood of secondary microbial contamination of wounds decreases, the degree of contamination of wounds with microflora decreases, and favorable conditions are created for the wound process.