title: Development of an experimental model of infected skin ulcer.
abstract: A model of infected skin ulceration could prove useful in assessing the clinical effectiveness of antimicrobial ointments and dressings. However, no such models have been previously established. Three types of wound were induced in rats: full-thickness wounds covered with gauze, burn wounds and wounds resulting from mechanical trauma. Wounds were inoculated with S. aureus or P. aeruginosa. Persistent infected wounds were observed only in full-thickness wounds covered with gauze. In a second experiment, colonies of P. aeruginosa or S. aureus were counted within 15 x 15 mm full-thickness wounds covered with gauze. Wounds were inoculated with 1.0 x 10(6) colony-forming units (CFU) of P. aeruginosa or S. aureus and then sealed to ensure an enclosed environment. Tissue bacterial counts exceeded 10(6) CFU/g from the next day until day 9 after infection. Bacterial counts exceeded 10(8) CFU/ml in wound exudate collected between days 1 and 7. We have developed a model of wound infection in which persistence of infection can be achieved for 9 days following ulceration due to the application of gauze to the base of a full-thickness wound.
authors.affiliation: Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Teikyo University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan. tachi@med.teikyo-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Masahiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tachi
authors.forename: Shinichi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hirabayashi
authors.forename: Yoshiyuki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yonehara
authors.forename: Yasutoshi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.forename: Philip
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bowler
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001458:Bandages; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D008297:Male; D011552:Pseudomonas Infections; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012883:Skin Ulcer / Q000382:microbiology; D013207:Staphylococcal Skin Infections; D014946:Wound Infection / Q000382:microbiology