References

World Health Organization. Burns. 2018. https://tinyurl.com/y2pt6u5n (accessed 26 November 2020)

Sadeghi-Bazargani H, Mohammadi R. Epidemiology of burns in Iran during the last decade (2000–2010): review of literature and methodological considerations. Burns. 2012; 38:(3)319-329 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.burns.2011.09.025

Rahmanian-Schwarz A, Beiderwieden A, Willkomm LM A clinical evaluation of Biobrane and Suprathel in acute burns and reconstructive surgery. Burns. 2011; 37:(8)1343-1348 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.burns.2011.07.010

Brunicardi F, Charles E Schwartz's principles of surgery, 8th edition. In: Brunicardi FC (ed.). : McGraw-Hill; 2005

Schwarze H, Küntscher M, Uhlig C Suprathel, a new skin substitute, in the management of partial-thickness burn wounds: results of a clinical study. Ann Plast Surg. 2008; 60:(2)181-185 https://doi.org/10.1097/SAP.0b013e318056bbf6

Voigt CD, Celis MM, Voigt DW. Care of outpatient burns, 5th edition. : Elsevier; 2018 https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-323-47661-4.00006-X

Rahmanian-Schwarz A, Gonser P, Amr A Return to German professional soccer league (Bundesliga) 6 months after severe burn: a case report. Burns. 2011; 37:(7)e55-e58 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.burns.2011.05.008

Highton L, Wallace C, Shah M. Use of Suprathe for partial thickness burns in children. Burns. 2013; 39:(1)136-141 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.burns.2012.05.005

Mądry R, Strużyna J, Stachura-kułach A Effectiveness of Suprathel application in partial thickness burns, frostbites and Lyell syndrome treatment. pol Przegl Chir. 2011; 83:(10)541-548 https://doi.org/10.2478/v10035-011-0086-5

Demling RH. Burns: what are the pharmacological treatment options?. Expert Opin Pharmacother. 2008; 9:(11)1895-1908 https://doi.org/10.1517/14656566.9.11.1895

Dunne JA, Murray A, Rawlins JM. A survey of skin substitute use in United Kingdom and Australasia. Burns. 2015; 41:(2) https://doi.org/10.1016/j.burns.2014.10.027

Kamolz LP, Kitzinger HB, Karle B, Frey M. The treatment of hand burns. Burns. 2009; 35:(3)327-337 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.burns.2008.08.004

Laitakari E, Koljonen V, Pyörälä S The long-term health-related quality of life in children treated for burns as infants 5–9 years earlier. Burns. 2015; 41:(6)1186-1192 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.burns.2015.02.005

Rajab TK, Wallwiener C, Wallwiener M, Kraemer B. Cost analysis of Jelonet versus Suprathel in the management of split-thickness skin graft donor sites. Burns. 2008; 34:(1) https://doi.org/10.1016/j.burns.2007.06.004

Kaartinen IS, Välisuo PO, Alander JT, Kuokkanen HO. Objective scar assessment—a new method using standardized digital imaging and spectral modelling. Burns. 2011; 37:(1)74-81 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.burns.2010.03.008

Lumenta DB, Kamolz LP, Frey M. Adult burn patients with more than 60% TBSA involved-Meek and other techniques to overcome restricted skin harvest availability—the Viennese Concept. J Burn Care Res. 2009; 30:(2)231-242 https://doi.org/10.1097/BCR.0b013e318198a2d6

Radu CA, Gazyakan E, Germann G Optimizing Suprathel-therapy by the use of Octenidine-Gel. Burns. 2011; 37:(2)294-298 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.burns.2010.07.001

Schulz A, Perbix W, Shoham Y Our initial learning curve in the enzymatic debridement of severely burned hands—management and pit falls of initial treatments and our development of a post debridement wound treatment algorithm. Burns. 2017; 43:(2)326-336 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.burns.2016.08.009

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Everett M, Massand S, Davis W Use of a copolymer dressing on superficial and partial-thickness burns in a paediatric population. J Wound Care. 2015; 24:S4-S8 https://doi.org/10.12968/jowc.2015.24.sup7.s4

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Wound healing
Wound dressing

Use of a biosynthetic wound dressing to treat burns: a systematic review

01 December 2020
Education

Abstract

Objective:

Accelerating the process of wound healing, reducing infection risks, and decreasing pain and discomfort in the burn area are important goals of burn treatment. To achieve these goals, the use of biosynthetic wound dressings has increased in recent years. Suprathel (PolyMedics Innovations, Germany) is a biosynthetic wound dressing used to treat both partial-thickness burns and split-thickness skin graft (STSG) donor sites, full-thickness wounds, large-scale abrasions, and scar revisions.

Method:

This study is a systematic review of empirical evidence reported on the application of the biosynthetic wound dressing in burns up to 2017. Keywords such as ‘Suprathel’, ‘effectiveness’, ‘safety’, and ‘cost’ were searched in PubMed, Cochrane, Scopus and Embase databases.

Results:

A total of 14 publications were identified, based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. The findings reported in the literature reviewed were classified in terms of safety, effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of use of the biosynthetic wound dressing. Regarding safety and effectiveness, the dressing was found to yield desirable results, particularly for partial thickness burns and STSG donor sites. As of 2017 no health economics assessments have been carried out.

Conclusion:

Despite the desirable advantages of the biosynthetic wound dressing with respect to its effectiveness, safety and ease of use, its major limitation was found to be its cost. However, in the absence of comprehensive studies on the quantification of all factors, there is scant scientific evidence for making reliable conclusions from this systematic review.

Burns cause approximately 180,000 deaths annually, with the majority occurring in low–middle income countries.1 Burns are a worldwide public health concern, causing human injury, mortality and disability.1 Moreover, injuries due to burns are associated with extreme pain and suffering that can impair a patient's quality of life.

Ineffective treatment of burn wounds lead to major economic and psychological impacts and long-term somatic sequelae,2 thereby imposing additional costs on the healthcare system. It is, therefore, essential to develop proper and effective treatments for burn wounds.

Wound dressings have found wide applications in recent years as a remedy to abate pain, reduce burn-related problems, protect against fluid loss and infection, and accelerate the recovery process of patients' burns (human performance and scar appearance).3 There is a wide range of wound care dressing types available, such as traditional gauze dressings, biologic dressings and synthetic dressings.4 There is evidence for the efficacy of each type of dressing, dependent on wound type but newer dressings benefiting from advances in technology can be more advanced with regards to ease of care, reducing pain and healing time, protecting against fluid loss and infections, and improved functional properties and affordability.3,4,6,7 Many treatment protocols are now available for first and third-degree (full-thickness) burns, however, the choice of treatment cannot be easily made, particularly in the case of partial-thickness.5 As a solution, synthetic dressings have been increasingly used in recent years in the treatment of superficial partial-thickness burns,3 particularly as a replacement for biological dressings that can be associated with problems of being animal-derived,8 and associated high cost.6 Suprathel (PolyMedics Innovations, Germany) is a novel biosynthetic wound dressing6 that serves as a temporary epidermal substitute in partial-thickness burns.9

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biosynthetic wound dressing
burn
cost
dressing
effectiveness
safety
Suprathel
wound care
wound dressing
wound healing
wounds