title: Moist dressing coverage supports proliferation and migration of transplanted skin micrografts in full-thickness porcine wounds.
abstract: Transplantation of skin micrografts in a 1:100 ratio regenerate the epidermis of full-thickness wounds in pigs within 14 days in a wet environment. The aim of the current study was to combine micrografts and commercially available moist dressings. We hypothesized that micrografts regenerate the epidermis when covered with a moist dressing. 5cm×5cm and 10cm×10cm full-thickness wounds were created on the backs of pigs. Wounds were transplanted with 0.8mm×0.8mm micrografts created from a split-thickness skin graft in a 1:100 ratio. 5cm×5cm wounds were treated with wound chambers, moist dressings or dry gauze (non-transplanted control group). 10cm×10cm wounds were compared to non-transplanted wounds, both covered with moist dressings. Reepithelialization was assessed in biopsies from day 10, 14 and 18 post-transplantation. 5cm×5cm transplanted wounds covered with moist dressings showed 69.5±20.6% reepithelialization by day 14 and 90.5±10.4% by day 18, similar to wounds covered with a wound chamber (63.9±16.7 and 86.2±11.9%, respectively). 18 days post-transplantation, 10cm×10cm transplanted wounds covered with moist dressings showed 66.1±10.3% reepithelialization, whereas nontransplanted wounds covered with moist dressings were 40.6±6.6% reepithelialized. We conclude that micrografts combined with clinically available moist dressings regenerate the epidermis of full-thickness wounds.
authors.affiliation: Division of Plastic Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.
authors.forename: Florian
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Hackl
authors.affiliation: Division of Plastic Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kiwanuka
authors.affiliation: Division of Plastic Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.
authors.forename: Justin
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Philip
authors.affiliation: Division of Plastic Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.
authors.forename: Philipp
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Gerner
authors.affiliation: Division of Plastic Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.
authors.forename: Pejman
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Aflaki
authors.affiliation: Division of Plastic Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.
authors.forename: J Rodrigo
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Diaz-Siso
authors.affiliation: Division of Plastic Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.
authors.forename: Geoffroy
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sisk
authors.affiliation: Division of Plastic Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.
authors.forename: E J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Caterson
authors.affiliation: Division of Plastic Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States.
authors.forename: Johan P E
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Junker
authors.affiliation: Division of Plastic Surgery, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States. Electronic address: eeriksson@partners.org.
authors.forename: Elof
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Eriksson
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D047070:Bandages, Hydrocolloid; D004817:Epidermis / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D062326:Re-Epithelialization; D012867:Skin / Q000293:injuries*; D016038:Skin Transplantation / Q000379:methods*; D013552:Swine; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D058106:Wound Closure Techniques; D014945:Wound Healing
keywords: Porcine model; Skin graft; Skin regeneration; Wound healing