title: Silver-coated nylon dressing plus active DC microcurrent for healing of autogenous skin donor sites.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Burn wounds are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality, and improved outcomes are demonstrated with early closure of both primary burn wounds and skin donor sites. Thus, technology that decreases the healing time of burns and donor sites would be potentially lifesaving. We present the results of a single-center, prospective, double-blinded, randomized controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy of silver-coated dressing with active microcurrent in comparison to silver-coated dressing with sham microcurrent on wound-closure time for autogenous skin donor sites.
  
  
  METHODS
  Four hundred five patients were screened for treatment of their donor sites using a silver-coated nylon dressing with either sham or active microcurrent stimulation. Thirty patients were enrolled in the study and then randomized. Of these, 5 patients were removed from analysis due to protocol deviations. Differences in time-to-closure were analyzed using Kaplan-Meier analysis and the proportional hazard regression model. Subjective verbal pain rating scores (0-10; 0, no pain; 10, worst pain) were also recorded. All devices were blinded and programmed at an outside facility, so that every patient had either an active or sham device. The study was unblinded only after the final patient's donor site had healed. All patients achieved donor-site healing before postoperative day 20. The 14 patients in the active microcurrent group [mean, 10.8 (2.9) days; range, 7-15 days] experienced no difference in time to wound healing as compared to the remaining patients in the sham microcurrent group [mean, 11.1 (2.0) days; range, 8-14 days; P = 0.75]. There were no differences in pain from one group compared to the other. None of the donor sites exhibited clinical signs of infection.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In a sample size of 25 burn patients, the addition of direct microcurrent to silver-nylon dressings did not decrease time to wound closure of skin donor sites, and it did not show a difference in reported pain levels.
authors.affiliation: From the US Army Institute of Surgical Research, Fort Sam Houston, TX.
authors.forename: Edward W
authors.initials: EW
authors.lastname: Malin
authors.forename: Chaya M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Galin
authors.forename: Kimberley F
authors.initials: KF
authors.lastname: Lairet
authors.forename: Todd F
authors.initials: TF
authors.lastname: Huzar
authors.forename: James F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: Evan M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Renz
authors.forename: Steven E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Wolf
authors.forename: Leopoldo C
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Cancio
mesh_terms: D000890:Anti-Infective Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage; D001458:Bandages; D002056:Burns / Q000150:complications / Q000628:therapy; D020099:Coated Materials, Biocompatible; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D004599:Electric Stimulation Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010146:Pain / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012837:Silver Sulfadiazine / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D017592:Skin Care / Q000379:methods; D016038:Skin Transplantation / Q000379:methods*; D013526:Surgical Mesh; D009927:Tissue and Organ Procurement; D014182:Transplantation, Autologous; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014945:Wound Healing / Q000502:physiology; D014946:Wound Infection / Q000517:prevention & control*
chemical_list: D000890:Anti-Infective Agents; D020099:Coated Materials, Biocompatible; D012837:Silver Sulfadiazine