Category: Articles

Launch of New MolecuLightDX™ Device to Enable Point-of-Care Imaging of Wounds in New Expanding Market Segments

MolecuLight Platform is Becoming the Standard-of-Care for Real-Time Imaging of Elevated Bacterial Burden in Wounds Across All Wound Care Settings

TORONTO, CANADA – (October 14, 2021) MolecuLight Inc., the leader in point-of-care fluorescence imaging for real-time detection of wounds containing elevated bacterial loads, announced the launch of the MolecuLightDX™, a new point-of-care device model targeted at the unique needs of new expanding wound care market segments in the USA. The DX is an expansion of MolecuLight’s product line and compliments the MolecuLight i:X®, the “workhorse” wound imaging device that has quickly become a standard in wound care practices worldwide, with over 2,000 units sold.

“The i:X and DX are the only commercially-available point-of-care devices to enable real-time detection of elevated bacterial burden in wounds. With the introduction of the MolecuLightDX, we are thrilled to expand our product line and provide added functionality for these wound care market segments,” says Anil Amlani, MolecuLight’s CEO.

Specifically, the MolecuLightDX has the following new features frequently required in these segments:

Comprehensive EMR (electronic medical record) integration options for multiple EMR environments,
Patient-centric user interface and workflow to allow for easy patient and wound tracking,
An Administrator workflow and system configuration capability, and
Docking system for easier charging of the devive.

As with the i:X, the DX has the same accurate, rapid digital wound measurement for documentation of procedures and of wound progression. Newly available on the DX is a stickerless measurement capability which automatically measures wound area without the need for wound stickers.

Photo Legend: Select new features of the MolecuLightDX include a larger screen (top left), new Stickerless digital wound area measurement for documentation and monitoring of wound progression (top right), and integrated docking station (bottom right). As with the i:X, the DX is used for point-of-care imaging of elevated bacterial burden in wound to help inform clinical decision-making (bottom left).

“With the expansion of our product line, we can now offer clinicians in any care setting the unmatched capabilities of the MolecuLight platform, with a feature set and price point that matches their specific needs”, says Amlani. “MolecuLight customers will continue to receive our comprehensive activation and training support on both platforms, including on-site training with patients, e-Learning courses and certification and ongoing in-person and remote support by our Clinical Applications team.”

In addition, all MolecuLight procedures will be able to benefit from the reimbursement pathway available in the United States for the MolecuLight procedure, which is applicable to both the MolecuLight i:X andDX devices. The reimbursement pathway includes two CPT® codes for physician work to perform “fluorescence wound imaging for bacterial presence, location, and load” and facility payment for Hospital Outpatient Department (HOPD) and Ambulatory Surgical Center (ASC) settings through an Ambulatory Payment Classification (APC) assignment.

The MolecuLightDX has received FDA clearance for sale in the USA, as well as the CE Mark and Health Canada approval for commercial availability in Europe and Canada.

The MolecuLightDX will be displayed in the MolecuLight exhibit booth at the upcoming clinical conference, SAWC (Symposium on Advanced Wound Care) Fall 2021, on Sunday, October 31, 2021 at 9:00 am at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada. To request an on-site clinical demonstration of the MolecuLightDX, please go to www.moleculight.com, or email info@moleculight.com.

About MolecuLight Inc.

MolecuLight Inc., a privately-owned medical imaging company that has developed and is commercializing its proprietary fluorescent imaging platform technology in multiple clinical markets. MolecuLight’s suite of commercially released devices, including the MolecuLight i:X® and DX™ fluorescence imaging systems and their accessories, provide point-of-care handheld imaging devices for the global wound care market for the real-time detection of wounds containing elevated bacterial burden (when used with clinical signs and symptoms) and for digital wound measurement. The company is also commercializing its unique fluorescence imaging platform technology for other markets with globally relevant, unmet needs including food safety, consumer cosmetics and other key industrial markets.

Rob Sandler
Chief Marketing Officer
MolecuLight Inc.
M. +1.647.362.4684
rsandler@moleculight.com
www.moleculight.com

Wound Care Advantage Launches National Awards Program Honoring The Unsung Hero Of Wound Healing: The Patient

Wound Care Advantage (WCA), the leading provider of consulting and digital services for wound care programs, is pleased to announce a new awards program honoring inspirational patients who demonstrate exceptional strength and fortitude during treatment. Sponsored by WCA, the Wound Care Hero Awards are designed to give special recognition to patients treated by wound care programs in the WCA Network, which comprises programs across 20 states.

The award was inspired by LaVonna Tipton, a cancer survivor who was treated for non-healing wounds at Clark Regional Medical Center, a WCA Luvo Network partner in Winchester, Kentucky. Despite the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, she attended every session of her hyperbaric oxygen therapy, which involved daily sessions, five days a week for one month. Her wounds, caused by previous cancer treatments, were fully healed, thanks to her diligence and the work of the Clark Regional team … read more

DIABETIC FOOT: FACTS AND FIGURES

A series of great informational graphics from Dr. Armstrong …. read more

Treatment of Non-Healing Diabetic Foot Wounds with Vaporous Hyperoxia Therapy in Conjunction with Standard Wound Care

Vaporous Hyperoxia Therapy (VHTTM), a patented FDA-510 (k) cleared technology, is an adjunct therapy used in conjunction with standard wound care (SWC). VHT is said to improve the health of wounded tissue by administering a low-frequency, non-contact, non-thermal ionic anti-microbial hydrating mist alternating with concentrated topical oxygen therapy (TOT). VHT was used to treat 36 subjects with chronic diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) that were previously treated unsuccessfully with SWC. The average age of DFU in the study was 11 months old and the average size was over 3 cm2. Wounds were either Wagner Grade 2 or 3 and most commonly on the plantar surface around the midfoot … read more

WoundsWeek Streaming Mon 6th – Fri 10th December 2021 | 6pm – 7pm (GMT)

With 10 hours of incredibly current topics, Wounds Week 3 will give a chance for the wound care community to come together in these difficult times, engaging in key education free of charge.

Each session has a live Q&A so participants can benefit from one-on-one interactions with the experts and engage in the event, no matter their COVID-19 situation. All our sessions are CPD-certified, and you will receive a certificate for watching on-demand too!

BioLab Sciences Named Bioscience Company of the Year

The emerging regenerative biotechnology company was recognized for its innovative regenerative therapies and advancements in wound healing
BioLab Sciences, an emerging regenerative biotechnology company, today announced it has been named Bioscience Company of the Year by the Arizona Bioindustry Association (AZBio), the foremost organization exclusively focused on Arizona’s bioscience industry. The biotechnology company was recognized for its innovations in regenerative therapies and advancements in wound healing. BioLab Sciences, which launched in 2018, has grown from a small team of four to 70 employees, with more than 47 full-time new hires joining the company in 2021 alone. The company has come to be known for its best-of-breed advanced wound care and regenerative products: Fluid GFTM, Membrane WrapTM, Amino RestoreTM, and its flagship product, MyOwn SkinTM, a revolutionary regenerative therapy that is transforming the wound care industry … read more

Vascular Care Falls Short Before Amputation for CLI: Medicare Analysis

Too few patients underwent angiography or interventions, and suboptimal care was linked with more deaths and readmissions.
Alook back at the care patients with critical limb ischemia (CLI) received in the year prior to amputation suggests that most received minimal vascular care, with 69% not undergoing a revascularization attempt that might have saved the limb or improved overall survival.

Earlier this year, the American Heart Association noted in a policy statement that after a period of decline in the 1990s and early 2000s, major and minor amputations have been on the rise. National surveys, too, reflect a dramatic undertreatment problem in the outpatient setting among patients with PAD … read more

The Current Situation for Non-healing Wounds

Accessibility of Wound Data in Canada

While even healing wounds require significant health-care resources, ultimately the majority of the resources used are for wounds that are non-healing.1,2 Non-healing wounds, which originate from different etiologies such as arterial and venous insufficiency, pressure and diabetic foot complications, are a serious public health problem that have devastating consequences for patients and result in high costs to health-care systems … read more (PDF)

Current Challenges in Wound Care

Chronic wound care is a wound that persists after 4-6 weeks, and a complex wound is one that a health care professional is the one who needs to take care of it. The lack of progression and the complex nature of the wounds are due to multiple reasons and can be explained by the following factors¹:

patient-related factors (lack of assessment of comorbidities or factors contributing to the wound, and difficulties related to the patient’s behavior and cooperation);
factors related to the wound (surface, volume, damage to the noble tissues, misdiagnosis of the etiology of the wound, and lack of diagnosis of infectious or ischemic complications of the wound);
factors related to the skills and knowledge of health professionals (absence of standardized or appropriate care protocols);
factors related to environmental or social difficulties in terms of resources available for the treatment of the wound.

read more

Effects of Simultaneous versus Staged VAC Placement in the Treatment of Deep Neck Multiple-Space Infections at a …

Tertiary Hospital Over a Four-Year Period in China

Deep neck infections (DNIs) are a group of serious bacterial infections occurring in the potential spaces and fascia of the neck. The incidence of DNIs is not clear. Although many studies have shown that the incidence of DNIs has decreased due to the use of antibiotics and improvements in sanitary conditions, reports also indicate an increased incidence of DNIs in the last 10 years. Deep neck multiple-space infections (DNMIs) are the most serious among all types of DNIs and often spread further to cause mediastinal infections, invade the carotid sheath, and possibly compromise the airway, resulting in life-threatening conditions.

Treatments for DNMIs include life-supporting measures, surgical drainage, and appropriate use of antibiotics. Among these treatments, surgical drainage is key. Although traditional extensive surgical drainage is effective for treating DNMIs, some limitations remain for this approach, ie, drainage depends on gravity, the locations for the drainage tube and incision are limited, dressing changes and wound irrigation more than once a day may increase patient suffering, and secondary wound infection may occur. In recent years, vacuum-assisted closure (VAC)

Malta’s first space research touches back down on earth

Project seeking to innovate diabetic ulcer treatment
Led by associate professor of biomedical science at the University of Malta Joseph Borg, the Project Maleth team sent samples of micro-organisms that cause diabetic ulcers to the International Space Station (ISS), in a bid to analyse how the tissue will react under extreme conditions.

They hope that the information they glean from the results will be able to help patients by developing new ways to treat diabetes and its symptoms … Launched from Cape Canaveral in Florida on August 28, Project Maleth spent just over a month aboard the International Space Station … read more

America’s Amputation Crisis May Soon Get Much Worse

Proposed Medicare cuts create greater barriers to screening and revascularization services
Few medical procedures are as life-altering as an amputation. But statistics show hundreds of thousands of Americans have their limbs surgically removed each year because they don’t have access to adequate vascular screening and care.

In the rural communities of North Carolina that we serve, the nearest “in-hospital” alternative to our office-based treatment locations is at least 2 to 3 hours away, which can result in delays in care that lead to poor clinical outcomes. The patients we serve are living with vascular diseases such as peripheral artery disease (PAD) and critical limb ischemia (CLI) … read more

1M diabetic people in Egypt at risk of amputation given hope by Sound Foot initiative

CAIRO – 4 October 2021: A total of L.E. 15 million have been allocated to support “Sound Foot” initiative to reduce the risks of diabetes, according to a Monday statement by the Ministry of Solidarity.

Some L.E.5 million of that budget will go to raising awareness on the diabetic foot and early detection. L.E. 10-15 million will go to treatment.

On Monday, Maker of Good Development, a charity organization that was established five years ago, held a conference to launch the initiative as part of the presidential initiative of Haya Karima. Minister of Solidarity Nivine el-Kabbag said in the conference that the Sound Foot initiative is a … read more

Footing the bill for diabetes

The world’s first Diabetic Foot Clinic was opened in 1981 at King’s College Hospital by Professor Michael Edmonds.

Since I jointly set up the Diabetic Foot Clinic at King’s College Hospital in 1981, I have seen how multidisciplinary care can have a huge impact on patient outcomes. Specialists working together under one roof can intervene and stop the progression of a disease which, if untreated, can swiftly lead on to tissue necrosis and gangrene. But, if I had to pick the one crucial thing that has really revolutionized our practice – helping to achieve a 50 percent reduction in major amputations … read more

Are Restaurants Exacerbating the Obesity Epidemic?

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, almost all discussion of restaurant-related health has centered on one topic: how to protect diners and staff from the virus. But another health issue has been largely overlooked: how restaurants compromise Americans’ health by selling fare that is high in caloric density, fat, added sugars, and sodium, but low in essential fiber. And during a pandemic where obesity and other pre-existing health conditions have been risk factors for severe disease, this discussion couldn’t be more relevant.

It’s common knowledge that fast food sold by chains such as McDonald’s, Burger King, Wendy’s, and the like has a poor nutritional profile. But the appetizers, entrees, and desserts sold at full-service restaurants aren’t much better … read more

4 leading surgeons discuss surgical wound infections (video)

Medtech company Next Science has released video of a popular panel discussion it sponsored at the recent AAOS Annual Meeting. The 28-minute video can be viewed below or on youtube

The presentation, “Biofilm and Surgical Site Infections,” features insights from four leading orthopedic surgeons:
– Dr. Robert M. Harris, Hughston Clinic (Columbus, GA)
– Dr. Jon E. Minter, Northside Hospital (Atlanta, GA)
– Dr. Randall Otto, SSM Health (St. Louis, MO)
– Dr. Ravi K. Bashyal, NorthShore University Hospital (Chicago, IL)
Each year, there are about 1.5 million surgical site infections (SSIs) in the U.S., and patients with SSIs are five times more likely to be readmitted and twice as likely to die. SSIs also contribute an additional $3.5 billion annually to the cost of healthcare.

Perianal Infections in Patients With Hematologic Malignancy

The Risk of Fournier’s Gangrene Leading to Mortality and Irreversible Organ Damage
The efficacy of surgical intervention for perianal infection in patients with hematologic malignancy is not well-established. Objective. This article presents a case series of perianal infection progressing to Fournier’s gangrene (FG) in patients with hematologic malignancy to guide physicians, because to the author’s knowledge, there were no randomized or prospective studies presenting the management strategies reported herein. It was hypothesized that surgery might reduce mortality and morbidity in patients with inflammation spreading beyond the perianal region, in patients with abscess formation, and in those who show no improvement with medical therapy. Materials and Methods. The data of 4 adults with hematologic malignancy who developed perianal infection progressing to FG between January 2010 and December 2018 were reviewed retrospectively … read more

NPWT Won’t Work If Your Patients Won’t Use It webinar | October 07, 2021

Nurses are tasked with managing an array of complex wounds. Negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) is often viewed as a highly specialized skill, but it does not have to be complex. Join this webinar to learn how NPWT’s mechanism of action can address acute wounds, chronic wounds, and closed incisions. This session will provide education on the types of wounds appropriate for the various types of NPWT and equip nurses to confidently manage a patient with NPWT … read more

6th Annual ACFAP Pediatric Foot & Ankle Seminar October 7th-9th

This CME event will feature leading authorities on pediatric foot & ankle conditions. It will cover topics ranging from pediatric H&P, flatfoot, equinus, sports medicine, surgery, and rotational conditions. The meeting will be preceded on Thursday October 7th by a one day national park excursion. Featured at this meeting will be spectacular Death Valley National Park … read more

The Compassionate Amputation: Think Outside The Limb

Faced with the challenges of non-healing diabetic ulcerations, a patient’s realization of progressively declining health, the burden of expansive health costs and the unrelenting frequency of doctor appointments, can cumulatively lead to a heavy emotional toll and state of despair. In dealing with high-risk patients, how we navigate the nuances of these aforementioned complexities may define our role in the lives we impact. While mental health consequences of chronic disease are well-documented, I feel there is no louder or stronger a case than the fragile cohort of those plagued with diabetes at the critical point where discussion about amputation becomes essential … read more

What COVID-19 taught us: New opportunities and pathways from telemedicine and novel antiseptics in wound healing

The COVID-19 pandemic deeply impacted the capacity of the health systems to maintain preventive and curative services, especially for the most vulnerable populations. During the pandemic, the wound healing centres in Italy assisted a significant reduction of the frequency of their hospital admission, since only urgencies, such as severe infections or wound haemorrhagic complications, were allowed to the hospital. The aim of this multidisciplinary work is to highlight the importance of a new pathway of wound care with patient-based therapeutic approach, tailored treatments based on the characteristics of the wound and fast tracks focused on the outpatient management, reserving hospital assessment only for patients with complicated or complex wounds. This analysis highlights the point that patients with chronic wounds need to be critically evaluated in order to find the best and most appropriate care pathway, which should vary according to the patient … read more

National Wound Care Strategy Programme: clinical work stream: lower limb update

The National Wound Care Strategy Programme (NWCSP) continues to make great progress. I appreciate many of you may have signed up to the stakeholder group and have been questioning our silence, but I can promise you that we have been working very hard behind the scenes to be able to provide you with tangible outcomes following your feedback. We have just finalised the ‘clinical navigation tool’ for all lower limb wounds, which is currently out for consultation with the registered stakeholder group. It is hoped that implementation of the tool will provide a consistent approach for all patients, irrespective of where they live in the UK and who their service provider is. The tool addresses all lower limb wounds, including diabetic foot ulceration, leg ulceration and pressure ulceration on the heel as it has been recognised that one of the fundamental issues is the correct ‘labelling’ of patients … View PDF

Footnotes: Nutritional Considerations For Diabetic Foot Ulcers

Hi, there. My name is Nicole Curreri, and I’m currently a fourth‑year podiatry student at Temple University School of Podiatric Medicine. My co‑authors, Ms. Diana Johnson, who’s a nutritionist and dietician, along with Dr. Khurram Kahn, a DPM at Temple (University School of Podiatric Medicine), have worked together on an article that emphasizes the role of nutrition in healing and treating diabetic foot ulceration.

Podiatrists treat lower extremity wounds secondary to pressure, diabetes, neuropathy, trauma, etc. Most commonly, we treat diabetic foot ulcerations. About 10 to 15 percent of patients with diabetes will go on to develop a diabetic foot ulceration … read more

Foot Revascularization Avoids Major Amputation in Persons with Diabetes and Ischaemic Foot Ulcers

The study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of foot revascularization in persons with diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) and below-the-ankle (BTA) arterial disease. Consecutive patients referred for a new active ischaemic DFU requiring lower limb revascularization were considered. Among those, only patients with a BTA arterial disease were included. Revascularization procedures were retrospectively analysed: in the case of successful foot revascularization (recanalization of pedal artery, or plantar arteries or both) or not, patients were respectively divided in two groups, successful foot perfusion (SFP) and failed foot perfusion (FFP). Healing, minor and major amputation at 12 months of follow-up were evaluated and compared. Eighty patients (80) were included. The mean age was 70.5 ± 10.9 years, 55 (68.7%) were male, 72 (90%) were affected by type 2 diabetes with a mean duration of 22.7 ± 11.3 years. Overall 45 (56.2%) patients healed, 47 (58.7%) had minor amputation and 13 (16.2%) major amputation. Outcomes for SFP and FFP were respectively: healing … read more

SURGICAL TREATMENT OF DIABETIC FOOT ULCERS DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC IN CHINA

Flow chart from David G. Armstrong link

iWound® USA and iWound® Canada Collaborates with Archangel™ Mercy, LLC. to Transform How and Where Wounds are Healed

TORONTO, Oct. 1, 2021 /PRNewswire/ – iWound USA and iWound Canada announced today that they have collaborated with Pittsburgh based, Archangel, to complete the expansive list of wound care services that they currently provide. Archangel is a dynamic, mobile and web-based wound care platform designed to guide clinicians to assess, document, treat, heal and achieve better wound care outcomes. iWound will act as a reseller of Archangel while providing first in class care via wound consultation, telemedicine, and education.

The iWound-Archangel collaboration will provide evidence-based treatment plans, customized formularies and workflows and the ability to order products for their patients regardless of the patient’s insurance.

“iWound’s key to success hinges on our experienced wound care professionals delivering expert advice powered by the predictable, successful patient outcomes analytics that Archangel provides to complete our comprehensive, wound care solution,” said Ray Garneau, President of iWound … read more

Wound Management Docs Might Want to Read this Interview with Wound Clinic Nurses

Editor’s note, this is from Aug 18, 2020 but I thought it might be of interest :

The theme of the August issue of Today’s Wound Clinic is “Multidisciplinary Care.” I decided to interview my amazing staff (pictured holding the hospital award for the clinic coming back the strongest since the pandemic, from left to right: Tara Stone, Debi Thompson, Donna Dulaney and Michelle Hebert). I think every physician who practices wound management ought to read this interview. They were brutally honest and probably said some things that other nurses would like to say but haven’t had a “safe space.” I welcome the constructive comments of other nurses, technicians, and therapists about how we can collaborate better in the care of our very complex patients. Here’s a safe space for those comments … read more

GROWING YOUR BUSINESS WITH WOUND CARE

You know me, you’ve heard me say it before—wound care is important for all DMEPOS providers because every patient has skin, and skin health affects each of us. The skin is our largest organ. Not only does it protect us against the ever-changing environment, it also maintains our integrity. Without proper treatment to lacerations, surgical incisions, burns and injuries, the “wound” could lead to life threatening consequences. All providers see patients who are prone to skin issues because of co-morbidities, surgeries or advanced age.

If you can’t tell, I’m trying to make the case that everyone should be in wound care. If you haven’t considered expanding or elevating your business with wound care, you should. It’s human nature to shy away from wounds, and you may not know what to ask or how to get started (VGM Wound Care can help with that). But your patients have health issues which put them at an increased risk for skin breakdown. Respiratory issues, cardiovascular problems, diabetics, and para- and quadriplegics are just a few of the conditions that … read more

New publication fosters improved wound care for ulcers, limb salvage, burns, trauma, and more

New Rochelle, NY, January 10, 2012–The rapidly advancing field of tissue injury and repair has an important new forum. Advances in Wound Care will report the latest research findings, innovative wound care strategies, industry product pipeline, and developments in biomaterials and skin and tissue regeneration to optimize patient outcomes. The bimonthly online publication from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc is an Official Publication of the Wound Healing Society, offering rapid dissemination of the latest scientific discoveries, translational research, and clinical developments in acute and chronic wound care. The inaugural issue is available free online at www.liebertpub.com/wound

… read more

The Challenges and Advantages of Office-Based Wound Care

Change in health care is in the winds these days. The current pandemic has allowed us to explore different ways of delivering health care, both in how we see patients and where we see patients.1 Although telemedicine might not be ideal for wound care patients, it opened the door to an option of remote supervision of wound care, which was previously inconceivable. Likewise, the shuttering of hospital outpatient departments deemed “non-essential” as the pandemic raged made office-based wound care look more promising. After all, podiatrists have been doing it for years.2

This article will explore some of the advantages and challenges for those in the practice of office-based wound care. Physician office-based wound care is the new frontier—well, new to the folks who are accustomed to providing these services in a hospital outpatient department … read more

Effectiveness of a synthetic human recombinant epidermal growth factor in diabetic patients wound healing

Pilot, double-blind, randomized clinical controlled trial

To investigate whether the addition of human recombinant epidermal growth factor (h-EGF) to 2% carboxymethyl cellulose gel is more effective in diabetic wound healing than standard treatment, a pilot, double-blind, randomized and controlled clinical trial with therapeutic intervention was performed at a university hospital. The sample consisted of 25 patients (14 in the intervention group that used rh-EGF and 11 in the control group that used 2% carboxymethyl cellulose gel). Data were tabulated in SPSS and analysed by intention to treat, without loss or exclusion of participants. Twenty-five subjects participated with a mean age of 60.6 years, a predominance of males in both groups and 100% prevalence of type-2 diabetes. Within 12 weeks, complete wound healing occurred in three ulcers in the intervention group versus one ulcer in the control group. The percent reduction in the wound area was significantly higher in the intervention group than in the control group (p = 0.049). Concerning the types of tissue, an increase in … read more

APMA Sponsored Webinar: Turn an Exam Room into a Multi-million Dollar Revenue Stream

In this webinar sponsored by Molecular Lab Partners, Joe Case, the CEO of Molecular Lab Partners, will discuss how they can help you bring Molecular Testing in-house with relative ease. Their turnkey process not only guides clinicians through the Physician Office Lab implementation process but also makes molecular testing fast and easy with Ready To Run, Custom Plated Assays In Convenient Break-Away Plates. Operating your own Physician Office Lab not only improves patient care with one-hour results on wound, nail fungus, and antibiotic resistance, but also provides you with a new revenue stream on testing you are already performing daily.

“I have to admit, I am always skeptical with consulting services related to in-office ancillary services. However, Molecular Lab Partners has definitely changed my mind! The entire POL implementation process, from the lab design and equipment procurement, to the hiring process of our Laboratory Director, Supervisor and Techs, has been seamless. I highly recommend the entire team at MLP.” ~ James Baldwin III, DPM … read more

HMP Global Announces Details of New “SAWC Change” Campaign

HMP Global announced details of the new “SAWC Change” campaign part of the Symposium on Advanced Wound Care (SAWC Fall), taking place as an in-person gathering, October 29-31, 2021 in Las Vegas.

The meeting has forged partnerships with the Wound Healing Foundation (WHF) and debra of America to support their efforts to advance innovative wound care research and outcomes for patients who suffer with chronic wounds.

For every registration to SAWC Fall, a donation will be made to each association … read more

Targeted Nutrition Therapy: Key Ingredients to Support Wound Healing

Time may not be able to heal wounds, as the saying goes, but the body can—with proper medical and nutritional support, according to recent data for targeted nutrition therapy.During the Symposium on Advanced Wound Care Spring 2021 virtual meeting, Maritza Molina, RDN, and David G. Armstrong, PhD, DPM, of the Keck School of Medicine of USC, in Los Angeles, discussed how incorporating nutrition as part of the overall treatment plan can promote healing, decrease treatment duration and improve patients’ overall quality of life … read more

Micreos secures €32 million for its endolysin-based platform as sustainable alternative to antibiotics

THE HAGUE, The Netherlands, Sept. 30, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — Dutch biotechnology company Micreos announced it has secured another €32 million in funding to further develop its endolysin platform technology, based on targeted killing of only unwanted bacteria. This funding round will help Micreos accelerate its clinical development programs for atopic dermatitis, diabetic (MRSA) wounds and bloodstream infections, based on its pharmaceutical lead compounds, XZ.700 and SP.800.

Endolysins as precision anti-bacterials

In its search for solutions, Micreos’ researchers, in close collaboration with the Swiss Federal Technology Institute ETH Zurich, turned to nature’s own precision anti-bacterials, named endolysins. Unlike antibiotics, these highly specific enzymes have the ability to target only unwanted bacteria, while preserving the microbiome, comprising billions of ‘good’ bacteria, essential for our health. Endolysins are safe and environmentally friendly. Because of their working mechanism, development of resistance is not expected.

Addressing unmet medical needs

XZ.700 targets Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), including the antibiotic-resistant MRSA, while preserving Staphylococcus epidermidis, considered to be beneficial on the skin and conducive to wound healing. SP.800 targets all staphylococcal species … read more

But Who Were Marie and Tooth?

Recently, during an academic discussion, the topic of Charcot Marie Tooth disease came up. It’s a very important disease to a podiatrist, so it makes sense that we were discussing its effect on a patient. During this discussion, my mind started wandering a bit (yes, I’ll admit it), and I thought, “I know who Charcot was, but who were Marie and Tooth?” After growing up in the medical world, I knew the prevalence of eponyms (in fact, it’s one of my favorite topics to read about), so I knew that Marie and Tooth were people. But who were they? It’s easy to forget that there were actual people behind these eponyms, people with lives, loves, adventures, passions and failures. So, let’s take a digression away from things clinical and look into a window on the past … read more

Patient Engagement, Diabetes and Diabetic Foot Ulcers | EWMA Podcast

In this episode, you can listen to a conversation between the EWMA Podcast Host Samantha Holloway and Dr Athanasios Hassoulas, director of the MSc in Psychiatry programme and Senior Lecturer in Psychological Medicine at Cardiff University. They will talk about the meaning and impact of patient engagement and empowerment in relation to diabetes and diabetic foot ulcer management. The podcast provides reflections on the topic as well as recommendations on how to implement these person-centred tools in your meetings with diabetic foot ulcer patients in you daily clinical practice … listen

Turkish scientist’s work shows spinach can speed up wound healing

Spinach does not give you instant muscles as it did to Popeye, though its healthy properties are highly valued. Now, a Turkish researcher has added a new one to them. According to assistant professor Serkan Dikici, baby spinach, in its decellularized form, can accelerate the healing of wounds.

Dikici, who works at the bioengineering department of Izmir Institute of Technology, won a doctoral researcher award in the United Kingdom for his study.

The young scientist attended Sheffield University as a Ph.D. student in tissue engineering and for his Ph.D. study, he chose the development of biomaterials for healing of chronic wounds, to replace or reduce the use of guinea pigs in this field … read more

Organizations Join Forces to Boost Wound Healing Care and Research

HMP Global’s Symposium on Advanced Wound Care (SAWC) Fall has established partnerships with the Wound Healing Foundation and debra of America to boost their research and improve care of patients with chronic wounds, such as those with epidermolysis bullosa (EB).

The SAWC Fall is scheduled to take place as an in-person meeting Oct. 29–31 in Las Vegas. For every registration, a donation will be made to each organization, according to HMP Global’s press release. To register, go here.

Established in 1999, the Wound Healing Foundation is a nonprofit dedicated to boosting scientific research and care of wound healing patients by funding research and promoting education and outreach.

debra of America works to improve the quality life of people with EB. Launched in 1980 to fill the gaps in knowledge about EB, the organization offers free services to U.S.-based EB patients and their families, and funds innovative research ultimately aimed at finding a cure for the disease … read more

As an Active Cleanser, Nexodyn(R) AOS Shows Superior Wound Healing Performance Compared to Standard of Care

Relief’s Subsidiary, APR Applied Pharma Research, Reports Data Published in Journal of Wound Care, Indicating Nexodyn(R) AOS Highly Effective Treatment to Support Healing of Hard-to-Heal Leg Ulcers … RELIEF THERAPEUTICS Holding SA (SIX:RLF)(OTCQB:RLFTF) (“Relief”), a biopharmaceutical company seeking to provide patients therapeutic relief from serious diseases with high unmet need, today announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, APR Applied Pharma Research SA (“APR”), reported data published in the peer reviewed Journal of Wound Care, indicating that the company’s Nexodyn(R) acid-oxidizing solution (AOS), developed with APR’s proprietary Tehclo(R) technology, was found to be a highly effective treatment to support wound healing in infected or non-infected hard-to-heal leg ulcers. The data also confirmed the safety and tolerability of Nexodyn(R) … Conducted by Robert Strohal, M.D., Professor and Department Head, Department of Dermatology, Federal Academic Teaching Hospital of Feldkirch, Austria, and colleagues, the open-label, randomized controlled MACAN study was conducted at two centers is Austria. A total of 50 patients were enrolled, with either infected or non-infected hard-to-heal leg ulcers of different etiology. Patients were treated for six weeks either with Nexodyn(R) AOS or standard of care (SOC) wound dressings … In the patient group treated with Nexodyn(R) AOS, wounds exhibited a faster and more pronounced wound size reduction compared with wounds in the SOC group. Additionally, compared to SOC, the treatment group showed a markedly greater percentage of complete healing of hard-to-heal ulcers by the end of the study period (32% versus 8%, respectively). Furthermore, Nexodyn(R) demonstrated its ability to significantly reduce the wound pH (p<0.0001) and thus promote a faster healing process. In all patients with infected leg ulcers, local infection was overcome more rapidly with Nexodyn(R) AOS treatment. Overall, the efficacy of Nexodyn(R) AOS was found to be not only non-inferior but superior to SOC wound dressings … read more

RETHINK Talks: An Interview with ReNew Wound Care

This interview is brought to you by ReNew Wound Care. This interview took place during a live Q&A session with ReNew Wound Care CMO Dr. Rekha Bhandari at the SNN RETHINK event in Chicago held on September 1, 2021. The interview has been edited for clarity … read more

Study shows how management of serious diabetic foot ulcers was possible during the COVID-19 lockdown

New research being presented at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD), held online this year (27 Sept-1 Oct), reveals how Belgium’s efforts to maintain a diabetic foot care programme during the COVID-19 pandemic can offer valuable lessons to the rest of the world.

“Thanks to the great efforts of diabetic foot clinics, continued availability of diabetic foot ulcer services during lockdown, although in a limited capacity, were really helpful, and may be the reason why we didn’t see late presentation and the impact on the severity of ulcers was limited to slightly larger wounds”, says lead author Dr An-Sofie Vanherwegen from Sciensano, Brussels, Belgium. “Our findings will hopefully guide diabetic foot clinics in serving their patients using innovative strategies … read more

Expanding horizons to upskill wound practice and research

With our horizons limited by Covid-related travel restrictions, it is more important than ever to experience and learn about our multicultural world through reading about wound-related research and practice in other jurisdictions and countries. Two such articles provide this important international insight and are included in this issue of the journal. The first by Obilor and colleagues describes the assessment of nurses’ knowledge, attitude and competence in wound assessment in a tertiary healthcare facility in southwest Nigeria. Here they found that many of the nurses surveyed were lacking in wound assessment competence … read more

The HealSource™ Clinical Practice Guidelines

The HealSource™ Clinical Practice Guidelines provide a standardized method for the delivery of care, treatment and services to patients with wounds or ulcers.
These clinical practice guidelines are a useful guide when caring for patients, providing general guidelines for the treatment of chronic wounds and the application of hyperbaric oxygen treatment. The data relies heavily on three significant and highly respected contributions to the fields of wound care and hyperbaric medicine:

The Wound Healing Society guidelines for the best care of chronic wounds
The Wound Ostomy Continence Nurses Society clinical practice guidelines
The Oxygen Therapy Committee Report of the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medicine Society

read more

The Fairy Tale is Over in the Wound Center

Once upon a time there was a happy land where at least half the patients seen in a hospital-based outpatient wound center (HOPD) were Medicare Fee for Service (FFS) beneficiaries. Their treatments were covered and we got paid for providing them. The most the patient had to worry about was the 20% “patient responsible portion.” In that kingdom, only private payers required prior authorization for services like hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT), negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT), or “skin substitutes,” but at least they actually authorized those treatments upon request … read more

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy for paediatric patients: an unintended consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT) is a useful adjunctive treatment for selected complicated wounds, including severe diabetic lower extremity ulcerations and compromised skin grafts or flaps. The Sars-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic has disrupted healthcare delivery, with its effects extending to delivery of HBOT. During the pandemic, paediatric patients in our geographic region who were referred for HBOT faced challenges as centres temporarily closed or were unprepared to treat younger patients. Our monoplace HBOT centre modified existing practices to allow for treatment of these patients. This study aims to outline the steps necessary to adapting a pre-existing HBOT centre for the safe treatment of paediatric patients … read more

Strategies and Techniques for Transitioning NPWT Patients to the Post-Acute Care Setting

Join Dr. Klein as he shares his experience transitioning NPWT patients to the post-acute care setting.

– Examine the prevalence of hospital readmissions, the economic impact, and the importance of preventing readmissions to improve wound healing.
– Discuss common challenges associated with discharging a NPWT patient to the post-acute care setting and the steps to develop a comprehensive discharge plan.
– Review strategies for educating patients and empowering them to be an active participant in their treatment plan as they transition from the acute to post-acute care setting.
– View case studies utilizing negative pressure wound therapy to optimize wound healing.
Read more and register

Improving Vascular Access Dressing Integrity in the Acute Care Setting

Hospitals have a major focus on improving healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) with intense scrutiny on central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) and other hospital-onset bacteremias. Efforts at prevention have long targeted the skin of the patient and healthcare worker processes such as hand hygiene, maximum sterile barrier precautions, antiseptic skin preparation, use of chlorhexidine-impregnated dressings, and other interventions.1–3 Maintaining the health and integrity of the patient’s skin receives considerable attention; however, less common are efforts to establish partnerships between wound/ostomy and infection prevention and/or vascular access teams to improve and promote HAI prevention processes … read more

Partial calcanectomy with antibiotic biocomposite injection for diabetes patients with heel ulcers and calcaneal osteomyelitis

a single stage treatment

Heel ulcers with calcaneal infection are difficult to treat, with frequent relapses. The authors report a series of four patients who presented with a heel ulcer and calcaneal osteomyelitis. The results show that using a single stage partial resection of calcaneum with primary closure of wound and an antibiotic biocomposite injection (Cerament®, Bonesupport) injection is a viable and useful technique in managing calcaneal osteomyelitis … read more

ACFAS 2022 – Austin Convention Center Feb. 24-27

Whether you come for the captivating sessions, hands-on workshops, or reconnecting with colleagues, ACFAS offers four days of learning as unique and as vibrant as the city of Austin itself! The ACFAS Annual Scientific Conference offers a wide range of topics so there is something for everyone, highly respected faculty, and the opportunity to enhance your knowledge and skills. Don’t miss out on this once-a-year learning experience … REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN! REGISTER BY 2/9 BEFORE ONSITE FEES APPLY … read more

Podiatry Management’s annual Buyers’ Desk Reference

Podiatry Management’s annual Buyers’ Desk Reference is a user-friendly guide to products and services currently being offered to the podiatric community … read more

Study provides new tool to assess amputation risk following popliteal vascular injury

A large, multicentre cohort study provides a simple, practical method to effectively stratify patients preoperatively into low- and high-risk major amputation categories.

According to lead author Leigh Ann O’Banion (University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, USA), “traumatic popliteal artery injuries present a serious clinical challenge because they are associated with the greatest risk of limb loss of all peripheral vascular injuries, with major amputation rates of 14–25%.” … read more

Principles of Wound Healing

A wound is a break in the continuity of a bodily tissue, such as the skin or mucous membrane. Wounds can be caused by events that are external to the organism – such as trauma, burns, or surgical incisions; and wounds can also be of endogenous origin – such as a distal ischemic event involving the toes due to embolism or arterial stenosis … Wound attributes, such as its causative mechanism, size, depth and location are useful for characterizing its type. When a wound is being assessed, it is also important to determine the stage of wound healing, extent of tissue repair, presence of any obvious elements preventing complete wound closure, and the patient’s psychological status. Complete restoration of tissue integrity requires multidisciplinary care and patient adherence to the recommended treatment …The patient’s baseline clinical condition greatly influences the wound healing process. Healthy individuals tend to recover quickly, with restoration of skin integrity and scars that have a better appearance as well as fewer complications. Patients with chronic diseases (e.g. diabetes mellitus and hypertension, malnutrition or obesity) tend to present delayed wound healing and have greater risk of complications such as infection, and functional and psychological sequelae … read more

Lower Extremity Arterial Disease (LEAD) Awareness and Discussion

By Holly Hovan, MSN, GERO-BC, APRN, CWOCN-AP

Peripheral artery disease (PAD) is also known as lower extremity arterial disease (LEAD), peripheral arterial occlusive disease (PAOD), or arteriosclerosis obliterans.1 LEAD is a disease that impacts the circulatory system, specifically the arteries (narrowing, which can result in a decreased supply of blood flow to the limb), and can eventually lead to limb loss or amputations. It is important to bring awareness to LEAD and its diagnosis, treatment, and prevention to improve access to care and screenings and ultimately to prevent limb loss … read more

Negative pressure wound therapy for surgical wounds healing by primary closure

Indications for the use of negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) are broad and include prophylaxis for surgical site infections (SSIs). Existing evidence for the effectiveness of NPWT on postoperative wounds healing by primary closure remains uncertain … To assess the effects of NPWT for preventing SSI in wounds healing through primary closure, and to assess the cost‐effectiveness of NPWT in wounds healing through primary closure … read more

Diabetic Foot Ulcer Prevention Strategies

Diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) may affect up to 25% of people with diabetes at some point in their lifetime. Once a person has developed a DFU, there is a 50% chance the ulcer will become infected.1 DFUs are also among the leading causes of amputation.2

Wound care specialists encounter DFUs regularly in the clinic, and these wounds can be very difficult to treat because of the underlying metabolic insufficiency. This blog provides a guide to current best practices with regard to DFUs and prevention … read more

Effect of Flap Selection on the Postoperative Success of Sacral Pressure Injuries: A Retrospective Analysis

Pressure injuries (PIs) continue to be a substantial problem and burden for the present-day health care system and are the leading cause of chronic wounds worldwide. There is no current consensus on the long-term results of the use of flaps in sacral PI reconstruction and optimal flap choice. Objective. This study aimed to evaluate whether flap selection influences postoperative results in sacral PI reconstruction. Materials and Methods. Patients who underwent surgery for PIs in the authors’ clinic between 2002 and 2016 were retrospectively analyzed. A total of 63 patients with stage 3/stage 4 sacral PIs and who underwent reconstruction with fasciocutaneous (FC) flaps (group 1), musculocutaneous (MC) flaps (group 2), or perforator (P) flaps (group 3) were included in the study. The mean duration of the follow-up period was 14.4 months, and patients were evaluated in terms of their demographic data … read more

Evidence Summaries for Improved Wound Care Practice

This month’s issue includes three important review articles related to alternative/local wound care, support surface evaluation testing, and skin failure. The “alternative” medicine review was originally submitted by three colleagues from Nanavati College of Pharmacy in India. The editorial team connected the investigators with Dr Laura Bolton, a collaboration that resulted in an excellent scoping review summarizing 50 years of literature.

Natural and synthetic agents have been used to optimize local wound care for centuries. The authors reviewed 281 abstracts outlining 274 studies with 28,315 participants … read more

The Use of an Antimicrobial Moisture Management Dressing Paired With a Gellable Fiber Technology under a Two-layer Compression System

in the Treatment of Heavily Exudating VLUs Improves Clinical Outcomes and Cost Savings

Presented at Symposium on Advanced Wound Care 2021

Introduction: Chronic venous insufficiency is the 7th most common chronic disease and is the underlying cause of 95% of leg ulcers1. Venous leg ulcers (VLUs) are difficult to treat and even with proper care can take a minimum of 12 weeks to heal2. VLUs are a clinical challenge because they are notoriously heavily draining wounds. This drainage contributes to the formation of excessive bioburden, devitalized tissue, and microorganisms, all which prolong wound healing. In order to effectively manage VLU exudate it is not uncommon to change dressings 3 or more times weekly. More frequent dressing changes increase the overall cost of care and may further contribute to delayed wound healing … read more

MolecuLight i:X® Receives FDA 510(k) Clearance for the Device’s Ability to Detect Wounds Likely to Contain Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA)

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Posted on September 24, 2021 at 2:23 pm

New FDA Clearance Illustrates the Utility of the i:X to Reliably Predict Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a Bacterial Pathogen that Precludes Wound Healing and Often Evades Conventional Treatment Methods

TORONTO, CANADA – (September 23 2021) MolecuLight Inc., the leader in point-of-care fluorescence imaging for real-time detection of wounds containing elevated bacterial loads, announces that it has received FDA 510(k) clearance for the detection of wounds containing clinically significant levels (>10⁴ CFU/g) of Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) for the previously cleared MolecuLight i:X imaging device. The i:X device visualizes fluorescence, enabling the point-of-care detection of wounds containing elevated levels of bacteria. This new FDA clearance supports the ability of the i:X device to increase the clinician’s ability to detect the presence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in wounds using the cyan fluorescence signal. This augmented labeling is based on a detailed retrospective statistical analysis of over 350 patients.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA) is a common bacterial pathogen that precludes wound healing. PA is notorious for its intrinsic resistance to many antibiotics and its tendency to form biofilm matrices that evade antibiotics and other conventional treatment methods¹. The presence of PA in wounds is associated with rapid deterioration and more severe wound outcomes ^2,3. The MolecuLight i:X is the only imaging device that provides real-time information on whether a wound is likely to contain elevated levels of PA (>10⁴CFU/g). The i:X is becoming an essential tool for assisting in clinician decision-making regarding the assessment and treatment of wounds.

Image and video courtesy of Dot Weir

“Bacterial removal is a critical component of wound care and wound healing. The ability of the MolecuLight i:X to detect and visualize wounds containing elevated bacterial burden while we are with the patient enables a proactive and objective approach to wound management”, says Dot Weir, RN, CWON, CWS, Clinician at Saratoga Hospital Center for Wound Healing and Hyperbaric Medicine, Saratoga Springs, New York and Co-Chair of SAWC, the Symposium on Advanced Wound Care. “Wounds harboring Pseudomonas often require unique treatments. This new FDA clearance recognizes the added benefit of the i:X in visualizing and differentiating Pseudomonas aeruginosa in wounds through the cyan fluorescence signal it produces on the images. This is especially important because detecting the presence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa at the point-of-care allows wound care professionals to act immediately to tailor our cleaning, debridement, antimicrobial strategy and treatments accordingly.”

This video showing the cleansing of a diabetic foot ulcer is an example of the MolecuLight i:X’s cyan fluorescence signal indicating the likely presence of PA. The cyan is clearly visible on the patient’s foot (see image) as well as on the gauze after cleansing, indicating that the wound contains clinically significant (>10⁴ CFU/g) levels of PA:

Video link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5YiT4zTUL8
References
¹ Raizman et al., “Rapid Diagnosis of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in Wounds with Point-of-Care Fluorescence Imaging“, Diagnostics 2021, 11(2), 280

²Turner et al., “Requirements for Pseudomonas aeruginosa Acute Burn and Chronic Surgical Wound Infection”, PLoS Genet. 2014, 10, e1004518

³McManus et al., “Twenty-five-year review of Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteremia in a burn center”, Eur. J. Clin. Microbiol. 1985, 4, 219–223

About MolecuLight Inc.

MolecuLight Inc., a privately-owned medical imaging company that has developed and is commercializing its proprietary fluorescent imaging platform technology in multiple clinical markets. MolecuLight’s first commercially released device, the MolecuLight i:X fluorescence imaging system and its accessories provide a point-of-care handheld imaging device for the global wound care market for the detection of wounds containing elevated bacterial burden (when used with clinical signs and symptoms) and for digital wound measurement. The company is also commercializing its unique fluorescence imaging platform technology for other markets with globally relevant, unmet needs including food safety, consumer cosmetics and other key industrial markets.

For more information, contact:

Rob Sandler

Chief Marketing Officer

MolecuLight Inc.
T. +1.647.362.4684

rsandler@moleculight.com

www.moleculight.com

Image: Download at: https://moleculight.box.com/s/b4d44tv25dq5wr834ilx7ldiqzl1orxi
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5YiT4zTUL8

Advances in Wound Care Technology: What We See Is What We Get … and More

The science of wound care dressings has progressed a long way over the years, especially during the not-too-distant past. As recently as the early 1990s, the main dressings available to patients included transparent films, hydrocolloids, foam, and calcium alginate. Although not incredibly common, moist wound care was also utilized more than many clinicians would care to admit some 30 years later. Standard dressings at the time were wet-to-dry and betadine.

Today, dressing technology has transitioned from a passive to an active role. Yet, the sophistication of dressings that our patients enjoy today would not be possible without understanding the clinical progression that has occurred, even among those treatments that have since been abandoned … read more

Periwound Skin Management

Periwound skin management is just as important as wound bed preparation in wound healing. The goal of periwound management is to maintain an optimal moist wound healing environment while preventing skin breakdown and infection. Skin is more vulnerable in patients with certain comorbidities and conditions. Periwound skin breakdown is just one of the culprits that delay wound healing and increase pain … read more

Use of a Novel Silicone-Acrylic Drape With Negative Pressure Wound Therapy in Four Patients With Periwound Skin Breakdown

Negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) is applied using a foam dressing and an adhesive acrylic drape to create a seal. Removal of this drape can be painful and may play a role in periwound skin breakdown during dressing changes. A novel silicone-acrylic hybrid drape (HA-drape) has been developed for use with NPWT to allow for repositioning after initial placement and easier removal. Objective. This retrospective case series reports on the use of HA-drape in 4 patients who experienced periwound skin breakdown. The goal was to minimize skin breakdown while maintaining a seal on the dressing. Materials and Methods. Four patients with mild to moderate periwound skin breakdown were selected to receive NPWT with HA-drape … read more

The wound healing effect of local leukocyte platelet-rich plasma after total hip arthroplasty

A randomized controlled trial:
Rapid wound closure is important after arthroplasty procedures to prevent postoperative complications. Platelets are rich in growth factors and leukocytes contribute to innate immunity. We hypothesized that topical leukocyte platelet-rich plasma (L-PRP) derived from the blood of patients would be beneficial to wound healing. In this randomized controlled trial, patients subjected to elective total hip arthroplasty (THA) were assigned by concealed allocation either L-PRP application onto the sutured fascia or no application (control) after the THA intervention. In addition, all patients received 1.5 g protein/kg, 5 g L-arginine, 500 mg vitamin C and 44 mg zinc daily over the 4-week postoperative period to obtain optimal nutrition. The primary endpoint was complete healing of the skin incision. The secondary endpoints were blood transfusions, length of hospital stay, pain and wound infections. Sixteen patients in the L-PRP group and 17 patients in the control group completed the trial. L-PRP treatment accelerated complete wound healing after 3 weeks (seven in the L-PRP group vs. zero in the control group, p = 0.003) and after 4 weeks … read more

From PMC: Current Clinical Recommendations for Use of Platelet-Rich Plasma

The ISWCAP and ASEAN wound conference 2021

The ISWCAP and ASEAN wound conference was held online on the 19–20 June 2021. Over the two-day programme the 434 participants saw 22 lectures and plenary sessions along with sponsored lunch symposia.

The chair of the organising committee Prof. Dr. Harikrishna K.R.Nair gave the opening address for what he described as “An inspiring two days, with a wealth of knowledge shared among the wound care family”. There were updates from Gulnaz Tariq on the World Union of Wound Healing Societies (WUWHS) events and Karen Ousey on behalf of the International Wound Infection Institute (IWII), along with sessions on diabetic foot ulcers, amputation, surgical site infection, oxygen therapy and much more. It was a truly international event with both speakers and delegates from Europe, North America, South America mainly Brazil, South Africa and Asia.

Recordings of that day will be uploaded onto the Malaysian Society Of Wound Care Professionals (MSWCP) website www.mswcp.org

EWMA Journal of Wound Management

July 2021 issue of the Journal of Wound Management. Official journal of the European Wound Management Association

This issue of the Journal of Wound Management includes seven original manuscripts. the full issue can be accessed here: Journal of Wound Management. No 22, vol. 2, July 2021

One Podiatrist’s Experience With A Novel NMES Device For Patients With PAD

In previous articles, I have written about medicine having endless career opportunities. One opportunity in the medical field is that to evaluate and potential provide feedback on an array of products or medical devices, in hopes of participating in the betterment of patient care. To me, advising on new innovations is always an exciting time because I believe becoming aware of the latest and cost-efficient technology to aid my patients with pain relief, healing, or even improved quality of life is imperative.

In recent months, I had the unique opportunity to trial a circulation booster device for the legs and feet … read more

Innosphere re-ups with diabetic ulcer gel developer

Innosphere Ventures Fund bought in again on GelSana Therapeutics Inc. An earlier backing funded product development for the start-up’s therapeutic gels … This second seed-stage buy-in will accelerate research work, prepare a U.S. Food and Drug Administration submission and begin to build a pipeline of products … GelSana’s hydrogels aim to improve healing of diabetic ulcers and other wounds: closing cuts and sores faster, growing stronger skin and enabling controlled delivery of healing therapies … A product prototype was aimed at diabetic foot ulcers but “we believe the unique properties of GelSana’s hydrogels may have much larger applicability in wound healing,” founder and CEO Melissa Krebs said … read more

Wound Care Advantage and Swift Medical Announce Partnership

Wound Care Advantage, the nation’s leading wound care consulting firm and Swift Medical, the global leader in digital wound care, announces a new strategic partnership.
Wound Care Advantage (WCA) , the nation’s leading wound care consulting firm and Swift Medical, the global leader in digital wound care, announces a new strategic partnership that brings Swift Medical’s advanced wound imaging platform to WCA’s Network hospitals to enhance their collective impact on the wound care industry.

Swift Medical’s technology platform will be integrated into the WCA network of tools and resources that empower hospitals to run successful wound care programs. Swift Medical’s technology connects directly with hospital EHR systems to enable seamless clinical workflows, such as advanced wound imaging, documentation and analytics.

“We are very pleased to partner with Swift Medical to bring their wound imaging technology to our wound centers,” says Melissa Bailey, President of Wound Care Advantage. “Our hospital partners are looking for continuum solutions and the introduction of Swift’s wound imaging platform into the WCA Network is an effective tool that compliments the operational expertise we provide.”

Expert EWMA group highlight need for investment in maternity services research

“Investment in maternity services research is essential for our understanding of the extent of wound-related complications for the postpartum mother and improved clinical pathways for wound management,” write Charmaine Childs (Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield, UK), Kylie Sandy-Hodgetts (University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia), and colleagues in an evidence-based consensus document for healthcare workers published by the European Wound Management Association … read more

Bacterial Biofilm Destruction: A Focused Review On The Recent Use of Phage-Based Strategies With Other Antibiofilm Agents

Biofilms are bacterial communities that live in association with biotic or abiotic surfaces and enclosed in an extracellular polymeric substance. Their formation on both biotic and abiotic surfaces, including human tissue and medical device surfaces, pose a major threat causing chronic infections. In addition, current antibiotics and antiseptic agents have shown limited ability to completely remove biofilms. In this review, the authors provide an overview on the formation of bacterial biofilms and its characteristics, burden and evolution with phages. Moreover, the most recent possible use of phages and phage-derived enzymes to combat bacteria in biofilm structures is elucidated. From the emerging results, it can be concluded that despite successful use of phages and phage-derived products in destroying biofilms, they are mostly not adequate to eradicate all bacterial cells. Nevertheless, a combined therapy with the use of phages and/or phage-derived products with other antimicrobial agents including antibiotics, nanoparticles, and antimicrobial peptides may be effective approaches to remove biofilms from medical device surfaces and to treat their associated infections in humans … read more

Managing the Surge: Delayed Chronic Wound Care During COVID-19

A growing body of research, as well as first-hand accounts from clinicians on the ground, indicate that a significant percentage of patients with chronic wounds have delayed preventative and emergent wound care during the COVID-19 pandemic.1 While it will take time to assess the full impact of these trends, existing evidence suggests delayed wound care can result in more severe infections, increased hospital admissions, and lead to more amputations.2 Therefore, it will be critical for providers, hospitals, outpatient departments, payers and policymakers to understand and plan for a surge in patients with untreated and unmanaged non-healing wounds and related acute-on-chronic complications as a result of delayed care during the COVID-19 pandemic … read more

Examining the Science of Chronic Wounds and the Leading-Edge Approach to Elevating Early Wound Care

Drs. Randall Wolcott and Andrew Rader host a discussion on the persistence of wound chronicity without early combination treatment strategies and review recent compelling data to support the need to change the status quo of early wound care … Register

Closure of a Difficult-to-Manage Chronic Pressure Injury with the Use of Autologous Platelet-Rich Plasma

Pressure injury (PI) corresponds to a skin damage of ischemic aetiology that affects the integrity of the skin and is produced by prolonged pressure or friction between a hard internal and external surface. Treatment can be challenging when there is no resolution with usual care. The use of autologous platelet-rich plasma (APRP) gel arises as a therapeutic possibility in the presence of chronic pressure injuries. The case of a patient with chronic PI who has been treated with APRP is presented, achieving resolution of the lesion … read more

Improving patient outcomes with medical technology

An ideal healthcare system cures every type of medical condition an individual may have. However, healthcare professionals have always had to judge whether they can cure a patient or simply manage their condition to provide a better quality of life.

Many pharmaceutical interventions and treatment options are designed to manage people’s illnesses, not necessarily cure them. This increases the cost of healthcare – particularly as people live longer and the proportion of illnesses that are manageable rather than curable increases – as do the requirements for long-term care.

Some conditions have proven particularly hard to cure, such as diabetes and high blood pressure, leaving no choice but to manage and monitor a condition across an extended period. However, this is costly and poses many challenges to medical and clinical resources … read more

Use of social media in medicine: the future – Webinar

This free-to-attend CPD webinar has been organised by British Journal of Hospital Medicine, supported by an unrestricted educational grant from Cook Biotech, Inc, West Lafayette, IN, USA.

In this webinar, the presenters will share their tips and insights into how healthcare professionals can make the most of social media platforms to share and learn new skills. They will also provide guidenace on the potential risks and how to avoid pitfalls.

*** This webinar is CPD certified and all attendees will receive a personalised CPD certificate sent by email after the session.***

read more

The Frank & Lizzie Show: Episode 007, Dr. Marc “Dutch” Matthews

On this episode, Frank & Lizzie sit down with Dr. Marc “Dutch” Matthews from the Arizona Burn Center to discuss his experience with Vashe, a hypochlorous acid preserved wound cleanser solution. Dutch explains how this pH skin neutral wound solution has helped changed his practice for the better, but more importantly the lives of his patients.

A NOVEL APPROACH TO TREATING HARD-TO-HEAL WOUNDS

OUR INNOVATIVE WOUND THERAPY IS DESIGNED FOR OUTPATIENT SETTINGS
Stiehl Tech is a medical device company focused on creating innovative surgical products for both outpatient and inpatient settings.

Selective Mechanical Debridement
Our Perilav wound irrigation system adapts time-tested surgical debridement methods for the outpatient setting. We make it easier for nursing home staff or home health providers to treat wounds in a more comfortable patient setting. Our unique treatment enclosure bags make a standard treatment safer and simpler by containing fluid and wound debris in an easily disposable bag … read more

UA Surgeon Armstrong Urges New Focus on Diabetic Ulcers

Remission — rather than repair — needs to be the goal of treatment, according to Dr. David Armstrong, whose report on diabetic foot ulcers appears in the New England Journal of Medicine … Foot ulcers are a prevalent complication for millions of people with diabetes. Estimates indicate that as many as one-third of people with the disease will develop at least one foot ulcer over the course of their lifetime. These wounds can lead to further complications such as strokes, heart attacks, infections, loss of limbs and premature death … read more

Lipodystrophy, a Common Risk in Diabetic Foot Ulcers

Patients with lipodystrophy have a high risk of diabetic foot ulcers, especially in the younger population.

Lipodystrophy is a disorder characterized by an abnormal fat distribution in the body. It can refer to an irregular loss or accumulation of fat tissue, and can even cause macrovascular and microvascular complications. Diabetic foot ulcers are a chronic complication of diabetes that can cause loss of lower limbs from amputations. DFU is also a risk factor in diabetes-related mortality. Previous studies have not found a correlation between lipodystrophy and DFU or even a treatment to reduce these complications. Lipodystrophy is a complication caused mainly by familial partial lipodystrophy. This study used an observational retrospective cohort study to understand the correlation between these two disorders, lipodystrophy and diabetic foot ulcers, and which age was the most critical … read more

RedDress Announces Distribution Agreements in 12 European Countries

Ponte Vedra Beach, Sept. 20, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — RedDress, a privately held U.S. and Israel-based wound care company, announced today strategic agreements in 12 European countries to distribute its innovative CE-marked wound care solution for exuding cutaneous wounds, ActiGraft® system, throughout Europe.

“We are proud to announce our expansion into Europe,” said Alon Kushnir, CEO of RedDress. “Our distribution partnerships in these key areas enable us to deliver our innovative solution in one of the world’s leading wound care markets and will accelerate our growth globally. We are looking forward to providing Europeans with an effective alternative treatment modality as a solution for their hard-to-heal chronic wounds.”

These strategic distribution agreements support RedDress’ global mission to improve the health and lives of patients around the world living with chronic wounds by expanding access to ActiGraft in several European countries:

Austria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Switzerland, Turkey, and Ukraine

read more

Measurement properties of quality of life instruments for adults with active venous leg ulcers: a systematic review protocol

Objectives The primary objective is to identify instruments used to measure quality of life (QoL) in studies of people with active venous leg ulcers (VLUs). The secondary objective is to map the qualities of each instrument to make recommendations for clinical practice and future research.

Introduction VLUs have a negative impact on patients’ QoL. Prolonged healing and frequent recurrence leads to pain, prolonged disability and psychosocial morbidity. Accurate measurement of QoL can optimise the evaluation of VLU treatments and guide clinician and patient decision-making … read more

Researchers explore promising treatment for MRSA ‘superbug’

A new Cornell study has found the antimicrobial properties of certain stem cell proteins could offer a potential treatment to reduce infection in skin wounds.

Treating wounds with the secretion of a type of stem cell effectively reduced the viability of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus – better known as MRSA – according to a new study from researchers at the Baker Institute for Animal Health, part of the College of Veterinary Medicine (CVM). Moreover, the secretion stimulated the surrounding skin cells to build up a defense against the bacterial invader, the researchers found … read more

The History and Effectiveness of Negative Pressure Wound Therapy – Part One

Negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) uses controlled negative pressure to remove fluid from open wounds. This is done through a sealed or foam dressing connected to a vacuum pump and canister1. Closed-system negative pressure is relatively new in modern medicine and will continue to evolve for better patient outcomes.

Although NPWT has increased in utilization over the past decade due to positive results and data showing its effectiveness in healing many acute and chronic wounds, it has potential for even more growth and innovation … read more

Microneedle patch penetrates biofilms to treat chronic wounds

Chronic wounds such as diabetic foot ulcers can be very difficult to treat, partially because of antibiotic-resistant “biofilms” that form over the affected tissue. A new type of microneedle patch, however, has been shown to deliver medication through such films … Bacterial bioflms are made up of colonies of bacteria that stick together by building up a slimy polymer matrix. Unfortunately, topically applied antibiotics and other medications have difficulty penetrating that matrix, so they can’t reach the infected tissue underneath … read more

Next Science: Products that help treat wounds

Founded by scientist Matthew Myntti, the company develops products to reduce biofilm-based infections, which can be fatal.

As a scientist at Medtronic’s Jacksonville office working on chronic infections, Matthew Myntti said he began to understand the life-threatening nature of chronic wounds, and the infections that come with them.

He left the medical technology company in 2012 to start his own research focused on treating chronic wounds and keeping them from becoming infected … read more

“Elephant-trunk” negative pressure wound therapy for fixing artificial dermis with basic fibroblast growth factor for critical limb ischemia

INTRODUCTION: The treatment of intractable toe ulcer with critical limb ischemia (CLI) is a challenge because of its poor blood flow and the wound. Here, a novel fixation technique for artificial dermis with negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) was reported.

METHOD: After the amputation of toe, artificial dermis made of collagen-gelatin sponge (CGS) was grafted onto the wound where human recombinant basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) was sprayed. The foot was put on adhesive iodine-impregnated drape, the artificial-dermis area was covered with a sponge dressing of which another end reached to the drape, and the vacuum port was applied on the dressing sponge sandwiched with two drapes … read more

Rates of T1D-Related Amputations Decline in Sweden

Results of a Swedish retrospective cohort study showed reduced rates of type 1 diabetes-related amputations over the past 2 decades.

In recent years, Sweden has seen a sharp decline in incidence of lower-level extremity amputations among individuals with type 1 diabetes (T1D), according to results of an observational cohort study. Findings were published in Diabetologia.

Because diabetes-related foot ulcers are common and healing is often delayed, limb loss through amputation “is not an infrequent final outcome,” the authors explained.

In addition, “about half of all nontraumatic amputations in the western world are attributable to diabetes … read more

The Hemostatic and Wound Healing Effect of Chitosan Following Debridement of Chronic Ulcers

Chitosan has been proven to be helpful in wound care as a hemostatic agent. The hemostatic effect is due to the positively charged chitosan interacting with negatively charged red blood cell membranes, initiating the agglutination of red blood cells and platelets. This promotes the activation of thrombin, which activates the clotting pathway, leading to thrombus formation. Objective. Based on the properties of chitosan as a rapidly acting hemostatic agent, the authors sought to determine if a chitosan gelling fiber wound dressing could control bleeding of freshly debrided wounds. The effect of the chitosan dressing on overall healing and patient and provider satisfaction was also evaluated. Materials and Methods. Wounds of any etiology requiring sharp debridement in patients older than 18 years who were capable of consent were eligible. Wounds were sharply debrided by curettage … read more

Swift Medical’s new imaging platform expands the digital wound care company into decentralized trials

Digital wound care company Swift Medical launched Swift Scientific, a digital imaging platform to support decentralized clinical trials.

The platform allows for large-scale image collection and management so researchers can monitor the effects of medical interventions at a multisite trial or from study participants’ homes.

Swift’s product, Swift Skin and Wound, is an AI-enabled platform that lets patients or providers capture high-precision images of skin conditions or injuries with a smartphone. It tracks disease progression and healing, and allows for remote communication and data sharing … read more

Wound Week 2022 | Call for abstracts

All abstracts for the Wound Week 2022 must be submitted electronically via the online platform: www.abstractscorecard.com

Hosted by the American Professional Wound Care Association (APWCA), Wound Week 2022 provides attendees with an innovative, unparalleled educational opportunity that will feature superior content delivered by multidisciplinary faculty with clinical expertise in the field of wound healing/care. Presenting your scholarly work at the APWCA Annual meeting will showcase your knowledge and dedication to discovery in wound care in front of a prestigious audience … read more

Antibacterial nanozymes: Healing chronic wounds with nanochemistry

Chronic infected wounds are often highly problematic for diabetic patients. However, a team of Chinese researchers has now developed a targeted approach to wound healing that makes use of nanomedicine, and their research has been published in the journal Angewandte Chemie. The researchers were able to deactivate wound-infecting bacteria using a solution of nanocapsules that alter the wound environment and unleash reactive oxygen species … read more

Evaluation & Management vs. Hospital Owned Outpatient Provider-Based Department Clinic Visits

If you had an opportunity to listen to the webinar entitled “2021 Mid-Year Reimbursement Reports: A Live Discussion Series,” that Jolayne Devers and this author presented on July 28, 2021, you know that the topic was Wound Care Audits Have Resumed: Are You Prepared? The attendees submitted many excellent questions during the webinar and sent many more emails to this author following the webinar. To accommodate the high volume of questions, this author promised to address the topics and questions in this and future Business Briefs columns.

One of the topics that generated many questions and follow-up emails was “Physician/qualified healthcare professional (QHP) evaluation & management (E/M) services are different than hospital owned outpatient wound/ulcer management provider-based department … read more

Abstracts from the Amputation Prevention Symposium (AMP) August 11-14, 2021

An Endovascular Approach as a Backup for Open Surgery After Corynebacterium striatum Vascular Graft Infection
Gabriel C. Inaraja-Pérez, MD, PhD, FEBVS; Manoela Oliveira Brito, MD; Alejandra Bartolomé Sánchez, MD; Daniela Acuña Paz y Miño, MD; Eva María Martin Herrero, MD, PhD; Jose-Manuel Buisán-Bardají, Prof. MD; Jorge Coghi Granados, MD

A Hybrid Approach to ALI Utilizing Penumbra Aspiration Thrombectomy in Conjunction With Catheter-directed Thrombolysis
Emily M. Rey, DO; Ganesh Arun, DO; Kristian O. Hochberg, MD; Sang Lee, MD

Cost-Effectiveness of Office-Based Labs for Treating Peripheral Arterial Disease
Morish Shah; Ashish Chaturvedi, BS; Paramjit S. Chopra, MD; Manasvi Paudel, BS; Kashish Shah

Hybrid Approach for Chronic Limb-Threatening Ischemia: A Case Report

Vincent Demesmaker, MD; Arnaud Kerzmann, MD; Evelyne Boesmans, MD; Vlad Alexandrescu; Jean-Olivier Defraigne

Observations Regarding the Effect of COVID-19 on Amputations Performed in a Tertiary Referral Health System

Dayle K. Colpitts, DO; Richard F. Neville, MD, FACS, DFSVS; Arkadii Sipok, PhD; Anthony Comerota, MD, FACS

Salvage of Popliteal-Dorsalis Pedis Bypass: A Case Series

Crystal James, MD; Denise Alabi, BA; Mabel Chan, MD; So Park, MD; John C. Lantis, II, MD

PRELUDE BTK vs. POBA Analysis: Serration Angioplasty and POBA

Marianne Brodmann, MD

read more

Diabetic Foot Ulcers and Pressure Injuries: How Do You Tell the Difference?

In evaluating a patient with a wound on the foot, a question that often comes to mind is whether that wound is caused by pressure, diabetes mellitus (DM), ischemia, trauma, or a combination. For example, a patient with DM who happens to have an ulcer on the foot may have a diabetic foot ulcer (DFU) or possibly something else. One of the bigger challenges that many clinicians face is trying to determine the etiology of a foot ulcer. There has been a great deal of debate about DFUs and pressure injuries (PIs) on the feet of patients in terms of how to appropriately assess, classify, and treat them. The confusion and lack of evidence in differentiating between these two types of foot ulcers, particularly on the heel, can lead to misdiagnosis, which can increase both financial and patient-related costs … read more

AOFAS Annual Meeting, September 22-25 Charlotte, North Carolina

AOFAS President, Bruce E. Cohen, MD, invites you to AOFAS Annual Meeting, September 22-25, for the premier meeting for foot and ankle education that gives you the choice between attending in person in Charlotte, North Carolina, or virtually. Learn more: https://aofas.org/annualmeeting

World Union of Wound Healing Societies (WUWHS) announces Congress Postponement

Professor Marco Romanelli and Gulnaz Tariq, President and President Elect of WUWHS have announced the postponement of the forthcoming Congress to 1-5 March 2022. With concerns around the availability of travel and the wish for the organisers not to divert attention of busy HCPs from their own local facilities during the Covid-19 pandemic, they have taken the difficult decision to postpone … read more

Enhancing Pressure Injury Prevention Strategies Based on New Technology: From Learning More to Doing Better

he med-surg health care environment is constantly changing, driving complexity in care. The most recent findings from the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services state that pressure injuries develop in nearly 2.5 million patients annually, representing 8.3% of hospital admissions; the resulting financial burden for care is estimated to be between $3.3 and $11 billion annually.1 Although most occurrences of hospital-acquired conditions sharply decreased between 2010 and 2017, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality reported that pressure injuries increased by 6%.2

Pressure injuries develop when there is localized damage to the skin or underlying tissues due to pressure—and sometimes combined with shear—that impacts the skin’s ability to provide oxygen and nutrients and remove waste byproducts … read more

Koya Medical and Essity Sponsor Forum for Physicians, Lymphedema Therapists and Researchers to Discuss Health Effects of Space Travel

Koya Medical, a transformative healthcare company focused on developing breakthrough treatments for lymphedema and venous diseases, and Essity, a leading global hygiene and health company that has as history of supporting space travel through the manufacturing of compression suits for astronauts, are sponsoring a forum to highlight the importance of venous and lymphatic health for space travel. The event takes place October 8, 2021 at the 35th annual congress for the American Vein & Lymphatic Society (AVLS).

The unique environment of space travel – reduced gravity, radiation exposure, varying atmospheric conditions, and the mental and physical stresses – imposes many challenges to human physiology and adaptability. The current goal is to create “nominal human function,” to extended safe habitation and exploration in space, and to ensure that humans thrive and quickly recover upon returning to Earth’s “1G” environment. For more than 50 years, NASA’s Human Research Programs have studied the intricacies of the human body in the weightlessness of space. Understanding the effects of spaceflight on humans is essential, and NASA and its European, Japanese, Russian and Australian colleagues have been particularly interested in investigating how the body reacts to long-duration spaceflight as the agency plans for extended missions on the Moon and Mars … read more

Predictors of Foot Ulcers Among Diabetic Patients at a Tertiary Care Center, Egypt

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a major public health problem worldwide and is considered one of the main global health emergencies of the 21st century.1 The prevalence of DM is increasing in both developed and developing countries, recent estimates indicate that there were 463 million adults living with diabetes in 2019 which is projected to increase to 642 million in 2040.2,3 In the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, the number of patients with diabetes is expected to increase from 34.6 million in 2013 to 67.9 million by 2035.2 The International Diabetes Federation (IDF) classified Egypt among the top 10 countries in the world with the highest prevalence of diabetes, where about 9 million adults between 20 and 79 years of age were living with DM in 2019. The number of patients with DM in Egypt has increased rapidly from about 4.5 million in 2007 to 7.5 million in 2013, and is expected to increase to 13.1 million by 2035.4 … read more

Wound Management of Venous Leg Ulcers in the Right Lower Extremity Limb

A 68-year-old male presented for care with lymphedema and multiple, copiously draining ulcerations on the right lower extremity (Figure 1). Symptoms were present for years and failed to respond to compression, foam dressings, or abdominal pads. Previous medical history included hypertension requiring use of anti-hypertensive medication … read more

Challenges faced by doctors and nurses in wound care management during the COVID-19 pandemic in Turkey and their views on telehealth

AIM: This study aimed to determine the problems faced by physicians and nurses dealing with chronic wound care during the COVID-19 pandemic and their views on telehealth.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: A descriptive and cross-sectional design was used in this study. The sample comprised physicians (n = 74) and nurses (n = 271) interested in chronic wound care. Data were collected through a questionnaire form consisting of open- and closed-ended questions … read more

Wounds UK Annual Conference | 8–10th November

this year’s Wounds UK Annual Conference will take place from 8–10th November with the ultimate goal to embrace the opportunity to connect, collaborate and learn in person. The sessions over the 3 days have been especially developed to have a greater emphasis on interaction and networking.

The programme will be diverse and will include updates from the National Wound Care Strategy Programme, tools for learning, patient engagement and shared care planning, and updates on the current science and terminology of healing. After the conference, you will return to your clinical settings armed with solutions to problems and campaigns for improving delivery of care … read more

The Analgesic Benefits of Ketorolac to Local Anesthetic Wound Infiltration Is Statistically Significant But Clinically Unimportant

A Comprehensive Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Objective: Even though ketorolac-infiltration is said to provide superior postoperative analgesic benefits in different surgical procedures, its safety and efficacy remain to be validated because of the lack of high-quality evidence. We aimed to summarize the efficacy and safety of ketorolac-infiltration based on published randomized-controlled trials (RCTs) … read more

Surgical wound dehiscence Improving prevention and outcomes

Surgical wound dehiscence (SWD) is a significant issue that affects large numbers of patients and
is almost certainly under-reported. The impact of SWD can be considerable: increased mortality,
delayed hospital discharge, readmission, further surgery, delayed adjuvant treatment, suboptimal
aesthetic outcome and impaired psychosocial wellbeing … download PDF

Combined Regenerative Approach for a Complex Lower Extremity Wound

More than 400 million patients worldwide are affected by diabetes; over their lifetime, at least 25% will develop foot ulcers that often result in high rates of nonhealing wounds and amputation. The authors present the case of a 43-year-old female patient with multiple comorbidities who presented with a large (8 cm x 4 cm), noninfected, hindfoot plantar ulcer that extended down to the bone and calcaneus. Over 2 weeks, the patient was successfully treated using a combination of an acellular dermal matrix, nanofat grafting, and negative pressure wound therapy, lessening the effects of the ulcer on the patient’s quality of life and achieving limb salvage. Utilizing the regenerative procedures described herein may improve patient care and decrease costs … read more

History and Physical as the Best Diagnostic Tool for the Wound Care Clinician

This chapter is an excerpt from Chapter 8: Wound Assessment by Monica Stout and Jayesh Shah, Wound Care Certification Study Guide 3rd Edition, (Best Publishing Company, 3rd quarter, 2021), and Chapter 8: Wound Assessment by Dr. Jayesh Shah, Wound Care Certification Study Guide 2nd edition, Best Publishing Company, 2016. Reprinted with permission of Best Publishing Company.

Even with the technological innovations of the 21st century, history taking still remains the best diagnostic tool and least expensive tool to make a good diagnosis. Recognizing clues from a patient’s history can give important information about the patient’s wound … read more

COVID-19 Skin Manifestations | A Guide for WOC Nursing Practice

The COVID-19 pandemic has created unique challenges for WOC nursing practice. Clinicians have identified skin manifestations on or near the bony prominence that are atypical of classic pressure injury among persons diagnosed with COVID-19. In some cases it may be difficult for the clinician to initially discern COVID-19 related skin manifestations from other etiologies … read more

Reducing the incidence and severity of pressure injuries in a high level care residential aged facility: a quality improvement project

Aims Reduce pressure injuries (PIs) in residents of a high level care facility by increasing staff knowledge and skills through clinical support and a skin integrity education package.

Method This project was a quality improvement (QI) activity and data were de-identified and reported in aggregate. Pre- and post-implementation data included staff knowledge testing and PI prevalence and severity.

Results Pre-implementation data indicated that staff knowledge was very limited, skin inspections and PI risk assessment were not performed, and use of pressure redistribution devices was low, with point prevalence at 64% of mainly severe PIs. Despite ongoing external clinical … read more

New Insights on Wound Healing Unraveled

Despite advancements in treating wounds, the molecular mechanisms behind wound healing is not fully understood. Now, researchers at the University of California, Irvine (UCI), have identified a new molecular pathway that promotes wound healing in the skin. Their findings could even play a role in nonhealing wounds.

Their findings are published in the journal JCI Insight in a paper titled, “GRHL3 activates FSCN1 to relax cell-cell adhesions between migrating keratinocytes during wound reepithelialization.”

“The migrating keratinocyte wound front is required for skin wound closure. Despite significant advances in wound healing research, we do not fully understand the molecular mechanisms that orchestrate collective keratinocyte migration,” the researchers wrote. “Here, we show that, in the wound front, the epidermal transcription factor Grainyhead like-3 (GRHL3) mediates decreased expression of the adherens junction protein E-cadherin; this results in relaxed adhesions between suprabasal keratinocytes, thus promoting collective cell migration and wound closure.” … read more

EZ Debride is Now Available in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, and Bruni

SAN ANTONIO, Sept. 2, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — EZ Debride, a registered and patented brand of MDM Wound Ventures Inc. developed and manufactured out of San Antonio and Kerrville, Texas, is announcing the distribution agreement with UCT Medical Co Ltd. Seoul, South Korea.

“At Intega Healthcare, we are excited to partner with MDM Ventures to introduce EZ Debride to our customers. EZ Debride is an innovative product that will offer clinicians an option to safely remove non-viable tissues with precision and minimal discomfort for patients. EZ Debride complements our innovative Wound Care Portfolio that comprises cellular-therapy & regenerative-tissue treatments, advanced wound care, surgical, and wound closure range. The partnership with MDM is allowing us to offer our clinicians a complete set of products and services which expands their patient treatment options.” Rebecca Ng, Business Development and Operations Director at Intega Healthcare … read more

The Clinical Role in Antimicrobial Resistance and Best Practices for Prescribing Antibiotics Podcast

In this podcast, Laura Swoboda, DNP, APNP, FNP-C, CWOCN-AP, discusses how clinicians should be mindful of their role in antimicrobial resistance and commit to responsible prescribing practices … listen

Surgical treatment of pressure injuries in children: A multicentre experience

Pressure injuries (PI) are infrequent in paediatric patients, prevalence estimates ranging from 1.4% to 8.2%, and reaching values as high as 43.1% in critical care areas. They can be associated with congenital neurological or metabolic disorders that cause reduced mobility or require the need for medical devices. In children, most pressure injuries heal spontaneously. However, a small percentage of ulcers that is refractory to conservative management or is too severe at presentation (Stage 3 or 4) will be candidates for surgery. We retrospectively reviewed the clinical history of paediatric patients affected by pressure injuries from four European Plastic Surgery Centres. Information was collected from clinical and radiology records, and laboratory reports. An accurate search of the literature revealed only two articles reporting on the surgical treatment of pressure injuries in children. After debridement, we performed surgical coverage of the pressure injuries. We report here our experience with 18 children aged 1–17 years, affected by pressure injury Stages 3 and 4. They were successfully treated with pedicled (17 patients) or free flaps (1 patient). The injuries involved the sacrum … read more

Physical activity, sleep and wound healing in adults with venous leg ulcers: a prospective observational cohort pilot study protocol

Background Adults with venous leg ulcers (VLUs) are less likely to be physically active and show greater sleep disturbances than the general population. Limited evidence suggests these issues contribute to VLU healing delays.

Objectives The primary objective is to determine if physical activity (PA) and sleep levels are associated with VLU healing. The secondary objectives are to: 1) evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of a wrist-worn accelerometer device, wActiSleep-BT device wear (ActiGraph); 2) evaluate the utility of self-reported PA instruments to measure PA for people with VLU; and 3) determine whether PA and sleep levels are associated with i) delayed healing, ii) self-reported quality of life (QoL) and/or iii) self-reported VLU pain … –

The Biomechanics of Diabetic Foot Amputation

According to the International Diabetes Federation, approximately 463 million adults live with diabetes mellitus (DM), a number projected to increase to 700 million by 2045; a diabetic foot ulcer (DFU) will occur in about 15% of that population. Multiple factors contribute to the development of those wounds including diabetic peripheral neuropathy, biomechanical imbalances, trauma, and peripheral vascular disease. In addition, 85% of all lower limb amputations in patients with diabetes are preceded by a DFU resulting in significant biomechanical challenges for these patients, many of who never become ambulatory again. Prior to surgical intervention, patients come with inherited and acquired biomechanical imbalances or weaknesses such as equinus, severe pronation/supination, mid and forefoot deformities, and muscle weakness unrelated to their other diseases. Surgeons may not take these into consideration when making decisions about amputation level … read more

A Few Notes on Caring for the Diabetic Foot

Monique Abner, MD, CWSP, shares a song she wrote to help patients with diabetes care for their feet and prevent complications.
watch video

Low-cost sensors rapidly detect infections in wounds

Low-cost, screen-printed carbon sensors have been used to rapidly detect bacteria commonly found in wounds, which could pave the way for a real time medical device.

A study carried out by the University of Strathclyde and NHS Ayrshire & Arran used sensitive portable electrochemical sensors, which detected infections in clinical samples within half an hour, much quicker than current hospital laboratory testing.

The detection of infection in clinical practice can be expensive and … read more

The Healing Power of Oxygen, by Dr. Joseph P. Cavorsi

Oxygen is an abundant chemical within our atmosphere that is essential for most living things. Everyone associates oxygen with breathing and the lungs, but the process goes far beyond. All cells in the body need oxygen to create energy to live. Inadequate oxygen delivery to the cells can lead to dysfunction of the cells, contributing to many disease states, and in severe cases may lead to cell death … read more

Innovation Medical Group Selects SnapshotNIR to Visualize Wound Healing in Advanced Wound Care

ent Imaging is pleased to announce that Innovation Medical Group (formerly Utah Foot and Ankle), in Salt Lake City, Utah, has selected SnapshotNIR as a standard of care throughout their clinical network.

Innovation Medical Group provides unique, advanced wound therapy for a wide variety of foot and ankle conditions including diabetic foot and wound care. SnapshotNIR provides physicians at their clinics the ability to conduct rapid wound assessments, allowing for more accurate healing trajectory predictions, the potential to mitigate risks early and improve clinical outcomes. SnapshotNIR provides a tracked and documented assessment of tissue viability and wound healing, supporting the responsible use of appropriate advanced wound care modalities and monitoring the therapeutic benefit.

“Understanding the wound is the first step to healing,” states Dr. Doug Toole. “Tissue oxygenation values are not detectable through the unaided eye or with traditional perfusion imaging … read more

Posted in Articles

Omeza Receives FDA Clearance for Omeza® Collagen Matrix

by admin on September 9, 2021

First Drug Device Combination of Its Kind for Chronic Wound Care Sarasota, FL, September 2, 2021 — Omeza, a skin science company, announced today the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) cleared Omeza® Collagen Matrix through the FDA 510(k) premarket notification process. Omeza® Collagen Matrix is Omeza’s first Rx product, and the first drug/device combination…

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HMP Global Announces Keynote Speaker for October Symposium on Advanced Wound Care

HMP Global recently announced world-renowned fetal pediatric surgeon Oluyinka Olutoye, MD, PhD will deliver the Keynote Address during the Symposium on Advanced Wound Care (SAWC Fall), taking place October 29-31, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. In a session focused on Research, Discovery & Innovation on Friday, October 29, 2021 at 9:10 AM PDT, Dr. Olutoye’s address will combine inspiration with critical insight, and detail how his early research evolved to clinical care and brought fetal wound healing to the field … Dr. Olutoye first achieved international recognition in 2016 after successfully completing an unprecedented operation on a baby-in-utero. Under Dr. Olutoye’s leadership, a team of 21 doctors removed a sacrococcygeal teratoma from a baby’s tailbone, establishing Dr. Olutoye as an innovator and difference-maker in the surgical field. His groundbreaking work and specialized clinical expertise in fetal and neonatal surgery has yielded promising research on the role of the inflammatory response in scarless fetal wound healing and in-utero correction of severe congenital malformations.

To learn more and register for SAWC Fall visit sawcfall.com.

Study finds sharp fall in amputations among people with type 1 diabetes

Amputation in type 1 diabetes is becoming relatively less common in Sweden. The rate has fallen by just over 40 percent over an approximately 20-year period, a University of Gothenburg study shows.

The results, published in the journal Diabetologia, are based on registry data on 46,088 people with type 1 diabetes in the years 1998–2019. The study involved linking data from the Swedish National Diabetes Register, the National Patient Register, and a couple of other Swedish national registers … read more

The Benefits of Merging Medical Care and Technology

Technology is always advancing, and it is one industry that never stands still. Another industry that is constantly pushing boundaries too is the medical or healthcare industry. Merging two industries to ensure high rates of success is essential. When you look at the advantages of merging technology with medical care and medical treatment, you realize that the potential is limitless and endless … For example, wound care is an area where little has changed over recent years. However, this may be something that can change with the introduction of the silicone-covered wound dressing, which enables cleaner and faster healing for certain types of wounds. These dressings can be changed even easier and quicker, which is, of course, beneficial to those changing, and cleaning up wounds, in any healthcare setting … read more

A novel macrophage-regulating new drug has shown promise in treating diabetic foot ulcers according to the latest issue of article ….

Accumulating scientific evidence has revealed that targeting macrophage phenotypes might be a potentially effective therapy in DFUs because hyperglycemia increases the ratio of proinflammatory M1 to pro-regenerative M2 macrophages. This study is the first international Phase 3 randomized clinical trial of an investigation drug able to regulate M1/M2 macrophage activities in the patients with diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs). The investigational compound has been given a research code: ON101 (trade name: Fespixon) has demonstrated the clinical superiority to the standard care (an absorbent dressing). The primary endpoint, complete healing, was found in 60.7% of the ON101 group and 35.1% of the comparison group during the treatment period (p=0.0001). Time to complete healing, the secondary endpoint, was faster in the ON101 group (p=0.002). The researchers have reported that “Topical application of ON101 with gauze … read more

Painful and Non-painful Diabetic Neuropathy, Diagnostic Challenges and Implications for Future Management

Peripheral neuropathy is one of the most common complications of both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Up to half of patients with diabetes develop neuropathy during the course of their disease, which is accompanied by neuropathic pain in 30–40% of cases. Peripheral nerve injury in diabetes can manifest as progressive distal symmetric polyneuropathy, autonomic neuropathy, radiculo-plexopathies, and mononeuropathies.

The most common diabetic neuropathy is distal symmetric polyneuropathy, which we will refer to as DN, with its characteristic glove and stocking like presentation of distal sensory or motor function loss … read more

Wound Care Centers Market Expected To Reach Over USD 32.60 billion By 2028: Data Lab Forecast

The Wound Care Centers Market study comprises a comprehensive market analysis that encompasses key aspects of the industry and defines current market dynamics in detail. It assesses growth patterns, magnitudes, and specific business developments under the current Wound Care Centers market scenario. The study report shows a balanced presentation of statistical and theoretical data with an accurately estimated forecast that includes the growth prospects in the specified period. The study also determines the market share and size of the Wound Care Centers along with the metric forecast associated with its growth and development during the forecast period. The study mainly focuses on the precise growth projections contained in the report … read more

Screening for Depression in Patients with Chronic Wounds

Wounds with a duration longer than 30 days are considered chronic. For example, diabetic foot ulcers comprise a large majority of these wounds and often exceed the expected 12-week healing period because of underlying factors that cannot be fully corrected.1 Patients with chronic wounds face considerable psychological stress because they need continuous medical care and frequent visits to healthcare facilities. The presence of these wounds significantly disrupts the daily life of patients, including changes in sleeping patterns, diet, and mobility. Loss of mobility may lead to feelings of loneliness, powerlessness, and dependency, as patients rely on family or friends to help fulfill their basic needs such as commuting, activities of daily living, and personal hygiene. Further, patients may experience chronic pain, exudate, and odor, which negatively impact social interactions, relationships, sexuality, and self-confidence. All of these psychosocial factors add up and may lead to a slow onset of anxiety and depression in patients with chronic wounds … read more

Reducing Hospital-acquired Pressure Injuries Among Pediatric Patients Receiving ECMO

BACKGROUND: Pediatric patients immobilized for certain procedures, such as extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), are at high risk for developing hospital-acquired pressure injuries (HAPIs). PURPOSE: To evaluate the rate of HAPI occurrence in ECMO patients before and after implementation of prevention interventions. METHODS: Patients younger than 18 years of age who were placed on ECMO from January 2012 through March 2020 were identified, and patient data … read more

Assessing the Links Between Eschar Removal and Management of Severe Burns

When treating severe burns, surgeons generally consider eschar removal to be the major factor and the top challenge in both initiating and planning for the optimal course of treatment for each patient. Before grafting, all devitalized tissue must be removed, leaving a wound bed of only healthy tissue. Some burn wounds are clearly full-thickness on initial examination, and some are clearly superficial, with relatively straightforward decision making. However, some wounds have an indeterminate depth and are more challenging. Deep partial-thickness, indeterminate-, and … read more

Webinar: Documenting Drainage Quantity

Coverage of surgical dressings by third-party payers depends, in part, on the volume of drainage of the ulcer being treated. Providers who dispense surgical dressings and expect payment from a third-party payer must document the drainage quantity of the ulcer. This webinar will review this requirement, list the options for drainage documentation, and detail exactly how drainage documentation should be documented in the medical record.

At the end of Dr. Lehrman’s presentation stay for a Question & Answer session where he will answer any questions that you might have.

What You Will Learn:

List the keywords needed in documenting ulcer drainage when dispensing surgical dressings.
Define different terms used to document ulcer drainage quantity.
List the drainage volume requirements associated with commonly used surgical dressings.

Register Now!

Singapore researchers develop novel 3D model to study vascular diseases

A Singapore team of scientists and clinicians from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) and Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH), have developed a three-dimensional (3D) model of the human artery blood vessel wall. Called an “arterial wall-on-a-chip”, it will help researchers study atherosclerosis … read more

Topical Cream Effective Against Diabetic Foot Ulcers

A topical cream that helps regulate macrophage activity was effective in treating diabetic foot ulcers, a clinical trial reported.

In 236 patients with foot ulcers treated for 16 weeks, the proportion who had complete healing of the ulcer was significantly higher in the group randomized to receive the topical cream (60.7%) versus a comparator group treated with absorbent dressing (35.1%; OR 2.84, 95% CI 1.66-4.84, P<0.001), said Shun-Cheng Chang, MD, of the Taipei Medical University in Taiwan, and colleagues … read more

FDA Clears Drug-Device Combination Matrix for Chronic Wound Care

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared the Omeza Collagen Matrix, a drug-device combination matrix for chronic wound care … The approval was granted through the FDA 510(k) premarket notification process. It is the first combination drug/device designed for chronic wound care … The wound care matrix is composed of hydrolyzed fish collagen infused with cod liver oil and other plant-derived oil and wax. After it is applied to a wound, the matrix is incorporated into the wound over time … read more

Take A Load Off: Offloading Tips And Pearls In Wound Care

Diabetic foot ulcerations (DFUs) affect approximately 26 million people worldwide, with a staggering 2.5 times increased risk of death at five years.^1-3 While many etiologies and conditions contribute to a wound, offloading is crucial to solving the wound healing puzzle.

In some literature, offloading is the most important aspect of DFU treatment in patients with neuropathy.^4-6 The thought behind offloading is relief of mechanical and abnormal stresses that the foot experiences from a loss of protective sensation. This combination results in tissue damage, thought to lead to many DFUs.^1,4,7 Specifically, mechanical stress is due to increased plantar pressure and shearing forces during the gait cycle, causing repetitive microtrauma … read more

Reducing Health Disparities in Pressure Ulcer/Injury (PU/PI) Detection & Management October 7-9, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia

Join the Association for the Advancement of Wound Care (AAWC) for our Pressure Ulcer Summit (PrU), themed Reducing Health Disparities in Pressure Ulcer/Injury (PU/PI) Detection & Management, on October 7-9, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia.

– Upon completion of this conference, participants will be able to:
– Describe existing disparities related to pressure ulcer/injury (PU/PI) prevention and care.
– Discuss challenges in providing equitable pressure injury prevention and care.
– Describe characteristics of pressure injury and other damage of persons with dark skin tones.
– Identify at least one method of leveling the playing field for pressure injury detection.

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Researchers develop new drug-free treatment to accelerate healing of chronic diabetic wounds

About one-fourth of people with diabetes develop painful foot ulcers, which are slow to heal due to low oxygen in the wound from impaired blood vessels and increased inflammation. These wounds can become chronic, leading to poor quality of life and potential amputation … Jianjun Guan, a professor of mechanical engineering & materials science in the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis, has developed a hydrogel that delivers oxygen to a wound, which decreases inflammation, helps remodel tissue and accelerates healing. Results of the work, which were in a mouse model, are published Aug. 28 in Science Advances. Ya Guan, a doctoral student, and Hong Niu, a postdoctoral research associate, both in Guan’s lab, are co-first authors … read more

Healogics® Raises Awareness of Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD) to Help Reduce Amputations

Healogics, the nation’s leading provider of world-class wound care services, is raising awareness of Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD) throughout September. Through this campaign, Healogics is supporting the American Heart Association’s goal to reduce amputations by 20% by 2030 through increased PAD Awareness, diagnosis and treatment … People with PAD often have non-healing wounds in their extremities due to the restriction of blood flow limiting the natural healing process, potentially leading to complications, such as amputation. PAD affects nearly 10 million Americans and is a contributing factor in up to 30% of non-healing wounds on the lower leg. Common symptoms associated with PAD include cramping, numbness, weakness or heaviness in the leg muscles, however up to 40% of people experience no symptoms. One in four people living with late-stage PAD may require amputation within one year … read more

Multifunctional Irrigation-Assisted Vacuum Drainage versus Traditional Drainage in the Treatment of Odontogenic Deep Fascial Infection

Odontogenic deep fascial space infection in the head and neck is a common potentially fatal clinical problem. Traditional drainage method is considered laborious and gravity-dependent. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the clinical effect of a modified multifunctional irrigation-assisted vacuum drainage (MIVD) by comparing it with the traditional drainage method in the treatment of odontogenic deep fascial infection … read more

Wipeout Wounds National Conference Tour

Your Guide to New and Essential Pressure Injury and Ostomy Treatment Protocols
Take control of wound healing by learning about new strategies and tools that will keep you compliant, PLUS spend one-on-one time with industry experts. Learn today and use your knowledge in your clinical practice as soon as tomorrow!
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RITA: The Wound Pros Leverages Artificial Intelligence With Its Wound Measurement App

The Wound Pros (https://thewoundpros.com/) today introduced its automatic wound measurement app, RITA designed to aid healthcare providers in the management and treatment of chronic, non-healing wounds. The Wound Pros is a physician owned and managed wound care company and a leading supplier of wound care dressings with a presence in 16 states across the United States … RITA represents The Wound Pros’ “high-tech” approach that leverages the power of artificial intelligence and machine learning to measure chronic non-healing wounds with pinpoint accuracy. According to Dr. Bill Releford, RITA creator and CEO of the Wound Pros, capturing highly accurate measurements is essential for delivering timely and comprehensive treatments to prevent wounds from worsening and improving healing outcomes.” Clinicians just need to take a picture of a patient’s wound with a smartphone or tablet and RITA will measure its size and generate professional documentation to support treatment and billing alignment. The application integrates seamlessly into The Wound Pros digital wound management platform and allows care teams to remotely monitor patients’ wound progression. RITA offers online and offline capabilities to ensure efficiency and reliability regardless of network connection status … read more

Remote Monitoring Saves Costs in Outpatient Negative Pressure Wound Therapy

In the outpatient setting, combining remote therapy monitoring (RTM) with negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) can support improved adherence to prescribed therapy. A recent study reported that patients receiving NPWT with RTM required fewer therapy days than patients receiving NPWT alone, possibly reducing costs of care. Our objective was to determine whether RTM reduced 90-day costs in patients undergoing NPWT … read more

Oxygen-delivering hydrogel accelerates diabetic wound healing

About one-fourth of people with diabetes develop painful foot ulcers, which are slow to heal due to low oxygen in the wound from impaired blood vessels and increased inflammation. These wounds can become chronic, leading to poor quality of life and potential amputation … ianjun Guan, professor of mechanical engineering and materials science at the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis, has developed a hydrogel that delivers oxygen to a wound, which decreases inflammation, helps remodel tissue and accelerates healing. Results of the work, which were in a mouse model, are published Aug. 28 in Science Advances. Ya Guan, a doctoral student, and Hong Niu, a postdoctoral research associate, both in Guan’s lab, are co-first authors … read more

Tele Wound Care Navigation for Wound Care Providers

The digital age is upon us, like it or not, ready or not. For the past few years, payers have incentivized, encouraged, reimbursed, and adopted various digital, remote monitoring systems and devices as a way to encourage providers to adopt more digital, remote methods. Although complete telehealth services were not reimbursed in all care settings in all Zip Codes by all payers throughout the United States at the beginning of 2020, many of the restrictions and barriers to provide nearly complete digital services were suddenly released in response to the needs of a nation in the throes of a pandemic … read more

Improved wound management at lower cost: a sensible goal for Australia

Chronic wounds cost the Australian health system at least US$2·85 billion per year. Wound care services in Australia involve a complex mix of treatment options, health care sectors and funding mechanisms. It is clear that implementation of evidence‐based wound care coincides with large health improvements and cost savings, yet the majority of Australians with chronic wounds do not receive evidence‐based treatment. High initial treatment costs, inadequate reimbursement, poor financial incentives to invest in optimal care and limitations in clinical skills are major barriers to the adoption of evidence‐based wound care. Enhanced education and appropriate financial incentives in primary care will improve uptake of evidence‐based practice. Secondary‐level wound specialty clinics to fill referral gaps in the community, boosted by appropriate credentialing, will improve access to specialist care. In order to secure funding for better services in a competitive environment, evidence of cost‐effectiveness is required. Future effort to generate evidence on the cost‐effectiveness of wound management interventions should provide evidence that decision makers find easy to interpret. If this happens, and it will require a large effort of health services … read more

Next Science to Exhibit Surgical Product Portfolio at AAOS 2021

JACKSONVILLE, Fla.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Next Science Limited (ASX:NXS), an innovative medical technology company, announced that it will exhibit at the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) annual meeting and conference in San Diego, California, from Aug. 31 – Sept. 3. Next Science, whose mission is to heal patients and save lives by addressing the impact of biofilms on human health, will exhibit at Booth No. 5035.

Next Science will showcase its portfolio of ground-breaking products, including:

XPERIENCE™ No Rinse Antimicrobial Solution, a non-toxic surgical solution that is designed to help prevent surgical site infections (SSIs) by rinsing away debris and microorganisms; and
SURGX®, a topical gel that is applied to a closed surgical incision to help prevent superficial SSIs.

Next Science also will host a presentation that addresses the impact of biofilms on SSIs, discusses risk mitigation strategies and shares clinical results from high-risk patients. The session, Biofilm and Surgical Site Infections, takes place on Sept. 1 from 12:40 – 1:25 p.m. in Meeting Room 1 and will be led by four prominent orthopaedic surgeons:

Dr. Robert Harris, Hughston Clinic
Dr. Jon E. Minter, Northside Hospital
Dr. Randall Otto, SSM Health
Dr. Ravi K. Bashyal, NorthShore University Hospital

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What Measurement Of Wound Healing Is Most Valuable?

Great, provocative work recently in the International Wound Journal by our colleagues Professor Keith Harding and coworkers.¹ In their study, they note that healing in total can be a challenging metric to measure, as every wound is very different. In the research world, this translates into difficulty in matching study cohorts, especially when there are not very large subject pools available. Also, they note that the lengthy time necessary to heal many wounds requires that the associated study also takes substantial time. This makes high-quality RCTs with statistically significant and applicable data few and far between.

Taking a slightly different viewpoint on evaluating outcomes in wound healing … read more

Sustained oxygenation accelerates diabetic wound healing by promoting epithelialization and angiogenesis and decreasing inflammation

Nonhealing diabetic wounds are common complications for diabetic patients. Because chronic hypoxia prominently delays wound healing, sustained oxygenation to alleviate hypoxia is hypothesized to promote diabetic wound healing. However, sustained oxygenation cannot be achieved by current clinical approaches, including hyperbaric oxygen therapy. Here, we present a sustained oxygenation system consisting of oxygen-release microspheres and a reactive oxygen species (ROS)–scavenging hydrogel. The hydrogel captures the naturally elevated ROS in diabetic wounds, which may be further elevated by the oxygen released from the administered microspheres. The sustained release of oxygen augmented the survival and migration of keratinocytes and dermal fibroblasts, promoted angiogenic growth factor expression and angiogenesis in diabetic wounds, and decreased the proinflammatory cytokine expression … read more

Novel Cellulose Fibre-Based Flexible Plasmonic Membrane for Point-of-Care SERS Biomarker Detection in Chronic Wound Healing

Wound management is stretching the limits of health systems globally, challenging clinicians to evaluate the effectiveness of their treatments and deliver appropriate care to their patients. Visual inspection and manual measurement of wound size are subjective, often inaccurate and inconsistent. Growth factors, such as pro-inflammatory cytokines and proteases, play important roles in cutaneous wound healing. However, little is known about the point-of-care monitoring of the changes in such markers during the healing process. Here, we explore the capability of surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) as a viable point-of-care platform to monitor the changes of these surrogate indicators of healing status in chronic wounds …. read more

Smart plaster could accelerate the healing of chronic wounds

Circulatory disorders, diabetes or lying in the same position for extended periods can all lead to chronic wounds that do not heal. There are hardly any effective treatment options. A materials science research team from Kiel University (CAU), together with colleagues from the University Medical Center Schleswig-Holstein (UKSH), Harvard Medical School, U.S., and Dankook University in South Korea, has developed a wound patch with enhanced healing functions which can be individually adapted for each patient. The 3D-printed patch has antibacterial properties, supplies the wound with oxygen and moisture, and supports the formation of new tissue … read more

Watch Richelle Roethler Present the Treatment Plan for a Pilonidal Cyst Removal

Richelle Roethler, RN, APN, FNP, CWCN-NP

In this presentation, Richelle Roethler, RN, APN, FNP, CWCN-NP, describes her treatment plan for a 40-year-old man with a surgical wound, which was left to close by secondary intention, located on the coccyx.

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PODIATRY MANAGEMENT FEATURES KERECIS FISH SKIN

Dr. Christopher Winters has written a “Profile in Excellence” article featuring Kerecis fish-skin technology in this month’s issue of Podiatry Management magazine.

In the two-page article, “Fish-Skin Grafts Heal Complex Wounds”, Dr. Winters interviews two podiatrists who have used different formulations of the technology — Ian Barron, DPM, of the Clintonville Foot & Ankle Group of Columbus, Ohio, and Brittany Wojnicki, DPM, of Horizon Health in Paris, Illinois. Each presents a case in which they have healed complex diabetic wounds using Kerecis fish skin.

Dr. Barron discusses his treatment of a 70-year-old woman, who presented a serious necrotizing infection that had required a fourth and fifth ray amputation. She had lost a lot of soft tissue, and the deep wound had extensive tunneling. She was at risk of a bellow-the-knee amputation, which Dr. Barron feared would shorten her life. In the article, Dr. Barron shares how he used a combination of Kerecis Omega3 MicroGraft and Kerecis Omega3 OR to heal the patient´s wound.

Dr. Wojnicki describes a case in which a 71-year-old diabetic, who had already lost one leg above the knee to amputation, developed gangrene in his remaining foot. In the article, Dr. Wojnicki details how, after trying standard of care methods without success, she healed the patient´s deep and complex foot ulcer with Kerecis Omega3 Wound. “I can´t believe how quickly the wound healed,” she says. “Other grafts take a while to incorporate. With the fish skin, I do a treatment, and a week later it is gone. The new skin is healthy and tough. I´ve never had an application show such a dramatic difference.”

Click here to read the full article

Durable Healing Outcomes of Topical Wound Oxygen (TWO2) Therapy Highlighted at Leading International Clinical Conferences

OCEANSIDE, Calif., Aug. 26, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — Advanced Oxygen Therapy Inc. (AOTI) announced today that its unique multimodality Topical Wound Oxygen (TWO2) therapy was recently highlighted at multiple leading international clinical conferences across the United States and United Kingdom. AOTI participated both as a sponsor and exhibitor at these events that were conducted in a hybrid format, where attendance could be either in person, or virtually, to allow for the greatest clinician engagement, something that has now become standard during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Clinical Societies
Clinical Societies
The prestigious Malvern Diabetic Foot Conference, the world’s longest standing international multidisciplinary diabetic foot meeting, was held in Malvern, UK, from July 7 – 9, where during the New Treatments for Diabetic Foot Lesions session, the growing portfolio of high quality clinical evidence supporting the effectiveness of cyclical-pressure TWO2 therapy in healing DFU, was expertly summarized by Professor Robert Frykberg, DPM, MPH., who also presented the results from the recently published paper entitled: Topical oxygen therapy for diabetes-related foot ulcers: A systematic review and meta-analysis, by Professor Golledge et al., which further highlighted the strength of the TWO2 RCT.

The Annual Scientific Meeting (The National) of the American Podiatric Medical Association was held in Denver, USA from July 29 – August 1, where a breakthrough abstract by Matthew G. Garoufalis, DPM and Aliza M. Lee, DPM, MS, entitled: The Power of TWO2: Real World Evidence of the Long-Term Healing and Health Benefits of Cyclical Pressurized Topical Wound Oxygen Therapy in Diabetic Foot Ulcerations was presented, further demonstrating significant reductions in Hospitalization and Amputations over 12-months for DFU patients treated with TWO2, compared to those who were not.

The 2021 Vascular Annual Meeting of the Society for Vascular Surgery was held in San Diego, USA from August 18 – 21, where during a Vascular Live Presentation, entitled: TWO2 Therapy for Healing DFU and VLU: Reducing Hospitalizations and Amputations, the eminent vascular surgeon, Anil Hingorani, MD, summarized the cyclical oxygen pressure noncontact compression mechanism of action of TWO2, reviewed real word cases and even provided a video testimonial from a patient who had suffered with nonhealing Venous Leg Ulcers (VLU) for years, until finally healing with the addition of TWO2 therapy.

Dr. Mike Griffiths, CEO and Medical Director of AOTI, commented; “AOTI is proud to continue to support the world’s leading clinical societies and wound care physicians in their quest for more durable healing of Diabetic Foot Ulcers and Venous Leg Ulcers by utilizing our unique multimodality approach. Our evidence-based TWO2 therapy is applied by the patient safely at home, which when combined with our enhanced Telehealth features, helps clinicians maintain critical continuity-of-care during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. It is especially rewarding to hear in a patient’s own words the significant impact that durably healing their refractory wounds has on their daily lives. It’s both quite humbling and motivating for us all to continue in our cause to make TWO2 therapy available to all who could benefit from its life altering outcomes.”

About AOTI

AOTI is a privately-owned company based in Oceanside, California USA and Galway, Ireland that provides innovative solutions to resolve severe and chronic wounds worldwide. Our products reduce healthcare costs and improve the quality of life for patients with these debilitating illnesses. Our patented non-invasive Topical Wound Oxygen (TWO2) therapy is unsurpassed in closing all chronic wound types.

For more information see: www.aotinc.net

Contact:
Dr. Mike Griffiths
CEO and Medical Director
317543@email4pr.com
(760) 672 1920

SOURCE AOTI Inc.

What to Know About Diabetes Prevalence and Management in Asia

The number of people who live with diabetes has been increasing worldwide over the last several decades, but there has been a significant jump in the number of people with diabetes — particularly type 2 diabetes — in Asia and China.

Currently, more than 60 percent of people with type 2 diabetes live in Asia, primarily in China and India.

There are many complicated factors that play a role in why diabetes diagnoses are increasing in this part of the world. Rapid industrialization and urbanization lead to lifestyle changes that factor into the increasing rate of diabetes in Asia … read more

Pandemic Derails Small Success in Lowering Diabetes-Related Amputations

Rates of minor diabetes-related lower extremity amputations (LEAs) in hospitalized patients increased between 2009 and 2017 in all racial and ethnic groups, in both rural and urban areas, and in all geographic regions across the United States, a new retrospective, observational study indicates … read more

A multi‐centre, single‐blinded randomised controlled clinical trial evaluating the effect of resorbable glass fibre matrix in the treatment of DFUs

Diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) represent one of the many complications of long-standing diabetes.1 Not only are these wounds expensive to treat, with a recent systematic review showing that the mean cost was over $31 000 in 2015,2, 3 but complications, especially infection, can require prolonged antibiotic administration, deep and extensive debridement, and lower extremity amputations when these measures fail. Even relatively shallow (UT1A, Wagner 1) DFUs that do not respond to standard of care (SOC) are at risk for amputation of the affected area.2-5 This risk increases for patients who have had prior DFUs or amputations. Any product, therefore, that can prevent infection or disrupt biofilm while promoting wound healing in a moist environment is worthy of further investigation … read more

Experimental chronic wound dressing made from human protein

If you’re trying to make a wound dressing that will be well-tolerated by the human body, you may be best off using human-derived materials. That’s the approach that German researchers have taken, creating a tropoelastin-based bandage. Tropoelastin protein molecules are produced naturally by the human body, and they’re the main building block of elastin, a biopolymer which gives the skin and organs their elastic properties. In the past, scientists have tried to reduce scarring by injecting tropoelastin directly into wounds, without much success … read more

The “self-treatment of wounds for venous leg ulcers checklist”

Patients who have chronic wounds such as leg ulcers should be active participants in their treatment and care. This participation may include self-treatment of the wound which involves the patient cleaning the wound, applying and removing wound dressings, and/or applying and removing compression therapy. The aim of the study was to develop a Checklist to assist nurses to appraise the conduct of wound treatment when undertaken by the patient. A three-phase mixed methods study was conducted. A systematic and evidence-based approach to developing and using structured observations for the study of health behaviour guided the process of developing, piloting and refining the Checklist … read more

Incidence and characteristics of diabetic foot ulcers in subjects with type 2 diabetes in Catalonian primary care centres

The main objective was to assess the incidence of diabetic foot ulcers in type 2 diabetes individuals from primary care centres in Catalonia, Spain … read more

Barriers to Prevention and Timely Presentation of Diabetic Foot Ulcers: Perspectives of Patients from a High-risk Urban Population in the US

Diabetic foot amputation is a preventable complication that is increasing in incidence in the United States, with disparities across geography, race, ethnicity, and income. This qualitative study explored the experiences of people in a low-income urban area in the United States in preventing and obtaining care for foot ulcers. Sixteen adults with foot ulcers were identified through purposive sampling based on records of hospital stays and primary care visits. Semi-structured interviews were transcribed and analyzed for key themes. Participants described inadequate understanding of diabetic foot disease: many sought care only after developing advanced symptoms. They identified social and health system factors as barriers to timely access to care. Some participants described a realization of the seriousness of their condition and an ability to improve self-care after developing an ulcer. Patients’ experiences can inform the design of amputation-reduction initiatives to achieve more desirable results, including enhanced self-management capabilities, timely access, and attention to social determinants … read more

TECHNOLOGY EFFECTIVE AGAINST ANTIBIOTIC-RESISTANT PATHOGEN

RESEARCH SHOWS ANTIBIOTIC-RESISTANT CANDIDA ALBICANS IS KILLED BY EXPOSURE TO VOMARIS BIOELECTRIC V.DOX™ TECHNOLOGY

Vomaris Innovations, Inc. announced today the publication of results demonstrating that the company’s bioelectric V.Dox™ Technology is effective in killing antibiotic-resistant Candida albicans pathogens. The manuscript, “Ketoconazole Resistant Candida albicans is Sensitive to a Wireless Electroceutical Wound Care Dressing,” was published in Bioelectrochemistry https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bioelechem.2021.107921. The research was led by Chandan K. Sen, Ph.D., Director of the Indiana Center for Regenerative Medicine and Engineering at Indiana University and Distinguished Professor and J. Stanley Battersby Professor of Surgery at the IU School of Medicine.

Antibiotic resistance is one of the greatest global public health challenges of our time¹. Every year, more than 2.8 million antibiotic-resistant infections occur in the United States², and 700,000+ people die globally³. Meanwhile, the discovery of novel antimicrobials is not keeping up with the emergence of new superbugs.^1,4 “Antibiotic resistance is growing, and we are fast running out of treatment options. If we leave it to market forces alone, the new antibiotics we most urgently need are not going to be developed in time,” predicts Dr. Marie-Paule Kieny, WHO’s Assistant Director-General for Health Systems and Innovation.

In the study, researchers sought to determine whether the wireless electroceutical wound care dressing or “WED”, was effective in managing pathogenic molecular processes employed by ketoconazole-resistant yeast Candida albicans. Candida albicans poses a major threat to skin and wound infection. It’s typically treated topically with the drug ketoconazole. However, ketoconazole-resistant pathogens are an emerging threat in the management of skin infection. The authors believe that the emergence of multidrug resistance in Candida albicans warrants the need for alternative, non-pharmacological methods of wound treatment.

Vomaris’s WED, powered by V.Dox™ Technology, is a proprietary pattern of embedded microcell batteries that wirelessly generates a low level of electricity in the presence of moisture. The research team used an in vitro model to test WED alone, ketoconazole alone, and the combination of WED + ketoconazole, against ketoconazole-resistant Candida albicans. Three controls were used, including no treatment, plain polyester fabric, and a fabric impregnated with silver.

The researchers found that WED functioned in a multi-pronged manner to effectively treat ketoconazole-resistant Candida albicans. Findings included:

Prevented hyphal growth. The development of hyphae (long, branched filaments) is a critical part of albican’s growth cycle. Stopping hyphal growth prevents C. albicans from causing infection and subsequent tissue damage.
Impaired efflux pump system. Damaging this system prevents albicans from rejecting helpful antibiotics.
Damaged cell wall integrity. Weakening the cell wall structure allows antibiotics to reach the pathogen.
Disrupted biofilm formation. C. albicans develops a biofilm ‘shield’ to protect it from immune system and antibiotic attack. WED interfered with its ability to form biofilm.
In contrast, silver alone was ineffective in all experiments.

“This work presents clear evidence that the wireless electroceutical dressing kills ketoconazole-resistant Candida albicans,” said Dr. Sen. “Our findings introduce the option of a novel biophysical solution for fighting chronic wound infection in which antibiotic-resistant pathogens are prevalent.”

“These latest findings by Dr. Sen and team add to our growing body of evidence on the significant role electricity can play in combatting antibiotic-resistant pathogens. In this era of antibiotic stewardship, a wound care product that kills pathogens without the use of antibiotics is an important technological breakthrough,” said Vomaris President and CEO Michael Nagel. “Our V.Dox Technology is already FDA cleared and is the only bioelectric product of its kind in the marketplace today.”

IU School of Medicine is the largest medical school in the U.S. and is annually ranked among the top medical schools in the nation by U.S. News & World Report.

About Vomaris

Vomaris Innovations, Inc. (www.vomaris.com) is a privately held medical device company specializing in bioelectric technology that is redefining infection control and wound healing. Vomaris’s patented V.Dox™ Technology is defining the bioelectric wound care market; it’s the only platform in the world that powers a new generation of antimicrobial dressings for the wound and incisional care markets. The company currently has six randomized controlled trials in progress.

Vomaris and V.Dox and respective logos are trademarks of Vomaris Innovations, Inc.

First-of-Its-Kind Virtual Workshop to Offer Hands-on Skills Practice in Its Live Coverage of Wound Hygiene Principles

Malvern, PA – July 30, 2021 – WoundCon, the first and largest global virtual wound care conference, is proud to announce a new and innovative live event that is free to attend and offers 5.25 CME/CE credits. Biofilm-Based Wound Care is a virtual, hands-on skills workshop that will be presented with closed captioning in eight languages, including Chinese, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, French, German, Polish and English.

The workshop will take place on Friday, September 24, 2021 from 7:00AM to 3:50PM EDT and will be available on-demand for two weeks after the event … read more

New Net Health Innovation Can Predict Risk of Amputations and Wound Healing Rates

Net Health recently announced the addition of two pioneering predictive analytic capabilities embedded in the workflow of the company’s widely used electronic health record (EHR) platform.

Offering artificial intelligence-based capabilities, the Net Health Wound Care software platform now includes the Risk of Amputation Indicator, developed to reduce the risk of amputations, and the Wound Healing Velocity Indicator, developed to predict wound healing rates, according to the company. Net Health says both capabilities will provide insights needed to develop optimal patient therapies, implement effective interventions, and plan treatment paths that will improve outcomes … read more

Silver Ion Hydrocolloid Gauze and Self-Adhesive Polyurethane Foam Dressing Combination Therapy Can Better Promote Healing of Skin Graft Donor Area Than Traditional Therapy

The management of skin graft donor area has been a troublesome problem in reconstructive surgery. Currently, no guidelines exist for the management of skin graft donor areas, and the disposal methods vary from clinician to clinician. Objective. With the goal of providing a better basis for improved patient care, the authors conducted a case control study to investigate whether a combination of silver ion hydrocolloid gauze and self-adhesive polyurethane foam dressing (AG+foam group) was effective in healing skin graft donor sites. Materials and Methods. Forty-eight patients requiring intermediate-thickness skin graft between January 2014 and December 2015 were included in the study. Inclusion criteria included a skin graft measuring at least 40 cm2 to be harvested from the ipsilateral thigh and patient age of 14 years to 60 years. All patients were treated differently according to the … read more

Made Easy: Wound bed preparation

Wound bed preparation (WBP) assists clinicians to identify and address the barriers of wound healing to create an optimal wound healing environment. WBP is a multifaceted approach that includes cleansing and debridement to enhance the effectiveness of therapeutic measures and prepare the wound for healing (Falanga, 2000; Schultz et al, 2003). The COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increase in supported self-care, but this has focused mainly on ensuring the supply of wound dressings, and that patients can identify wound deterioration and change dressings. As the effects of the pandemic continue, there is an opportunity to formalise a supported self-care framework for patients and carers that includes WBP.

MADE EASY: WOUND BED PREPARATION

A report of 12 months’ of data collected from a diabetic foot clinic at a public hospital in Phnom Penh, Cambodia

This report interprets data gathered from a diabetic foot ulcer clinic in an outpatient department of a public hospital in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The data were gathered between September 2019 and August 2020 and were entered into a Microsoft Excel™ spreadsheet. It gives basic demographic information of Cambodian patients with diabetic foot ulceration and provides data that can be used to measure any future research or audit. The data collection timeframe … read more

Wound Healing Foundation (WHF) Thomas K. Hunt Lecture Video

We (Wound Healing Foundation) honor Dr. T.K. Hunt, a stalwart wound care expert and supporter of the Wound Healing Foundation. Dr. Hunt is the founding President of the Wound Healing Society and the namesake for the Wound Healing Foundation’s scientific and intellectual Endowed Lecture

Evidence for Person-centred Care in Chronic Wound Care

Chronic wounds affect an estimated 2.21 per 1000 population. They are a significant source of morbidity and affect individuals physically, psychologically, socially and financially. Person-centered care is one approach to improve patient outcomes in wound care as it values patients’ perspectives, beliefs and autonomy and considers the person as a whole within the cultural context in which care is provided.

UPCOMING WEBINAR, Thursday, August 26, at 1PM EDT The Effects of Biofilm and Prolonged Inflammation on the Wound Bed

Speaker: Gregory S. Schultz, PhD

Optimizing treatments to rapidly heal individual chronic wounds requires assessing multiple factors and implementing effective treatments to correct the problems that impair healing as described in the TIMERS guidelines, which emphasizes reducing the wound biofilm bioburden.

ECONOMIC VALUE OF PODIATRIC SURGERY WHEN ADDED TO A VASCULAR SURGERY PROGRAM

Over the last decade, multidisciplinary “toe and flow” programs have gained great popularity with proven benefits in limb salvage. Many vascular surgeons have incorporated podiatrists into their practices. The viability of this practice model requires close partnership, hospital support, and financial sustainability. We intend to examine the economic values of podiatrists in a busy safety-net hospital in the Southwest United States … read more

Case Presentation: Diabetic Foot Infection and Failed Oral Antibiotics

In this video, Robert J. Klein, DPM, FACFAS, CWS, discusses a case that involves a 51-year-old male with a diabetic foot infection (dog bite) and failed outpatient therapy with oral antibiotics. The patient was then admitted IVABx and for OR debridement and NPWT. Watch the video to learn more about the patient’s outcome.
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Brian Wise is named Woundtech CEO

HOLLYWOOD, Fla., Aug. 16, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — Woundtech, a leading wound management company serving Medicare Advantage health plans and at-risk senior care provider groups, announced that Brian Wise has been named as its Chief Executive Officer. Brian Wise succeeds Founder Jeffrey Galitz, MD who will continue as a member of the Board of Directors and advise the company on strategic and clinical direction.

Brian Wise is an accomplished healthcare leader with over twenty years of experience scaling complex care management services and technology under value-based and capitation arrangements. Brian most recently served as Chairman of Cix Health, a patient mobile app empowering patients and family members to manage complex chronic conditions. He was the founder and CEO of Advance Health which later merged with CenseoHealth to become Signify Health. Signify Health offers solutions to payers and healthcare providers to succeed in managing value-based care. Brian also served in senior leadership roles at Amerigroup and Coventry Health Care … read more

Significant Reductions in Amputations, Emergency Visits, and Hospital Readmissions Associated with Advanced Treatment Using Skin Substitute Products …

MiMedx Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: MDXG) (“MIMEDX” or the “Company”), an industry leader in utilizing amniotic tissue as a platform for regenerative medicine, today announced publication of its peer-reviewed study in the Journal of Wound Care (JWC), addressing the observed impact of Advanced Treatment (AT) using all high-cost skin substitute products in lower extremity diabetic ulcers (LEDUs) based on data from the Medicare Limited Dataset (October 1, 2015 through October 2, 2018). The study assessed outcome in patients receiving AT with all high-cost skin substitute products, as designated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), for LEDUs versus No Advanced Treatment (NAT), and found that AT use could lead to a 42% reduction in major and minor amputations and all related costs, compared to NAT. Further, the study highlights preferable outcomes when AT follows parameters for use (FPFU), underscoring the importance of early treatment with regular intervals and well-defined treatment guidelines … read more

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by admin on August 16, 2021

Hidradenitis suppurativa treatment should be ‘layered,’ address psychosocial impacts

Providers should avoid monotherapy when treating hidradenitis suppurativa, and instead use a “layered and rotated” approach that also addresses the isolating psychosocial aspects of the disease, noted a speaker here … read more

Application of Topical Sucralfate and Topical Platelet-Rich Plasma Improves Wound Healing in Diabetic Ulcer Rats Wound Model

One of the most devastating complications of diabetes mellitus is diabetic ulcers. Not only because these ulcers heal slowly, these ulcers may also cause disability and even results in limb loss.1 A diabetic ulcer is a chronic wound usually found in the soles of the diabetic patient’s feet. The occurrence of diabetic ulcers is mostly associated with neuropathy and vasculopathy in the form of the peripheral arterial disease which happens in the lower limb of the diabetic patient.2 Around 2% to 5% of all population in the world suffers from diabetic ulcers.3 The hyperglycemic state in diabetics causes molecular and physiological changes that cause diabetic ulcers to become difficult to heal, increasing its risk to secondary infection and potentially causing limb amputation if it is not treated properly.4 Diabetic ulcers account for nearly 90% of all lower limb amputation cases, with a reported mortality rate per year of 5.5% due to diabetic ulcers.

The main aim of diabetic ulcer therapy is to prevent extensive damage and secondary infection of diabetic ulcers, thereby minimizing the risk of further damage or even limb amputation. A thorough therapy for diabetic ulcers includes wound debridement, wound dressing, revascularization procedures, infection management, and ulcer off-loading … read more

A Human Fibroblast-Derived Growth Factor Preparation in the Management of a Chronic Surgical Wound in a Diabetic Patient: A Case Report

The treatment of choice in patients with ischaemic heart disease is coronary artery bypass grafting. The procedure entails the harvesting of the great saphenous vein through a significant leg incision, which may result in infections and wounding at the incision site. Patients with diabetes mellitus pose a greater risk of developing non-healing wounds, which may significantly affect the patient’s quality of life. The use of anti-inflammatory factors and other chemokines derived from cultured human fibroblasts may represent a useful therapeutic approach for the management of surgical wounds in patients with the greatest probability of being wound healing compromised. This case study describes the treatment of a non-healing surgical tibial wound in a male diabetic patient treated with a preparation of human anti-inflammatory interleukins cytokines, and growth factors. The treatment resulted in swift recovery, significant pain reduction and complete wound closure with minimal scarring … read more

A molecular approach to maggot debridement therapy with Lucilia sericata and its excretions/secretions in wound healing

Chronic wounds caused by underlying physiological causes such as diabetic wounds, pressure ulcers, venous leg ulcers and infected wounds affect a significant portion of the population. In order to treat chronic wounds, a strong debridement, removal of necrotic tissue, elimination of infection and stimulation of granulation tissue are required. Maggot debridement therapy (MDT), which is an alternative treatment method based on history, has been used quite widely. MDT is an efficient, simple, cost-effective and reliable biosurgery method using mostly larvae of Lucilia sericata fly species. Larvae can both physically remove necrotic tissue from the wound site and stimulate wound healing by activating molecular processes in the wound area through the enzymes they secrete. The larvae can stimulate wound healing by activating molecular processes in the wound area through enzymes in their excretions/secretions (ES). Studies have shown that ES has antibacterial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, angiogenic, proliferative, hemostatic and tissue-regenerating effects both in vivo and in vitro. It is suggested that these effects stimulate wound healing and accelerate wound healing … read more

Wound Practice and Research Volume 29 Number 2

Editorial
Connect, Collaborate, Innovate
Prof Allison J Cowin and Dr Peta Tehan

Original research
Dissemination of microbiota between wounds and the beds of patients with pressure injuries: a cross-sectional study
Mao Kunimitsu, Gojiro Nakagami, Aya Kitamura, Takeo Minematsu, Yuko Mugita, Kazuhiro Ogai, Junko Sugama, Miku Aoki, Chika Takada and Hiromi Sanada

Original research
Reducing the incidence and severity of pressure injuries in a high level care residential aged facility: a quality improvement project
Allyson Waird, Susan Monaro

Review
Caring for a child with Epidermolysis Bullosa: a scoping review on the family impacts and support needs
Colin J Ireland, Lemuel J Pelentsov, and Zlatko Kopecki

Clinical Trial Protocol
Physical activity, sleep and wound healing in adults with venous leg ulcers: a prospective observational cohort pilot study protocol
Yunjing Qiu, Victoria Team, Christian R Osadnik, Jane O’Brien, Louise Turnour, Ayoub Bouguettaya, Rosemary A McGinnes and Carolina D Weller

Review protocol
Measurement properties of quality of life instruments for adults with active venous leg ulcers: a systematic review protocol
Shiwen Liu, Victoria Team, Yunjing Qiu and Carolina D. Weller

Abstracts
Abstracts from the Wounds Australia Conference 4 – 6 May 202

Medicinal Plants as Efficacious Agents for Diabetic Foot Ulcers: A Systematic Review of Clinical Studies

A diabetic foot ulcer (DFU) is a chronic, nonhealing wound that occurs in approximately 15% to 25% of patients with diabetes, and amputation is necessary in approximately 5% to 24% of these patients. Medicinal plants have demonstrated promising wound healing activities in animal models of DFUs as well as in clinical studies. These plants, which are described as medicinal in different regions of the world, are not considered to be standard medicinal treatments in Western medicine at this time. Some medicinal products, such as bromelain—an herbal protease currently used for enzymatic debridement of wounds—have been obtained from plants, showing the important role of these natural products as sources of wound healing agents. This paper aims to review clinical studies on the effects of medicinal plants in patients with DFUs based on the improvement of local and systemic parameters related to wound healing. Electronic databases including PubMed, Scopus, and Cochrane Library were searched for studies from inception through May 2019 using the keywords “diabetic foot ulcer” … read more

Scenes From the COVID Resurgence in Wound Clinics

Physicians weathered the first wave of COVID-19 over a year ago, coping with challenges such as a lack of personal protective equipment, providing care via telehealth, and a lack of vaccines. With the Delta variant, many hospitals may be swamped with patients with the coronavirus. Several physicians spoke to Today’s Wound Clinic about their challenges.

“We are busier than ever,” says Matthew Regulski, DPM, ABMSP, CMET, FAPWH(c), the medical director of the Wound Care Institute of Ocean County, New Jersey. “We have so many wound patients. Our wound centers are jam-packed.” … read more

DFCON DIABETIC FOOT CONFERENCE October 21 – 23, 2021

DFCon is the premier international, interdisciplinary diabetic foot conference in North America. This year, the DFCon will be hybrid, so it will be possible to attend both virtually and physically. As always, the program will be designed for the wide spectrum of generalists and specialists who diagnose and manage the diabetic foot. Didactic talks, panel discussions, Q&A sessions, specialty symposia and workshops will delve into diagnostic and interventional strategies for diabetic foot ulcers and amputation prevention. DFCon is singular in that it allows close interaction with world-renowned clinician scientists working on both tried and true methods and cutting-edge technology

read more

Frank & Lizzie Show: Episode 006, Dr. Naz Wahab

Join Frank & Lizzie as they discuss the newest wound care technology in the toolbox with Dr. Naz Wahab, MD, FAAFP, FAPWCA. The group will be discussing how this handheld imaging device differs from thermography, how it captures tissue oxygenation in the microvascular system, it’s application in the daily operations of the wound care clinic, and learning curves experienced. For more information and to see the impressive clinical outcomes achieved with Kent Imaging SNAPshot, contact eric@kentimaging.com

Assessment of Microcirculation in the Type 2 Diabetic and Impaired Glucose Tolerance Feet of Elderly Men by CEUS

Objective: To evaluate the foot microcirculation in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and impaired glucose tolerance patients (IGT) with contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS).

Methods: The study included 37 patients with T2DM but without diabetic foot (DM group), 15 patients with impaired glucose tolerance (IGT group) and 10 elderly males with normal fasting blood glucose (FBS) and negative glucose tolerance tests (control group). Color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) and CEUS were performed on the right foot great toes for detecting the blood perfusion performance. CEUS images were recorded and parameters of CDFI and flow time-intensity curves (TICs) were analyzed by the Student’s t-test
… read more

Skin closure device aids wound care in a variety of knee procedures

The goals of surgical wound closure include enabling the wound to heal rapidly without infection or complication and returning the incisional region to the best level of function and appearance. How effectively health care professionals use their time in the surgical suite and postoperatively can be a determining factor in the selection of a closure modality … read more

Webinar: Innovations in Wound Care

This 30-minute presentation features learning opportunities that will provide in-depth instruction and demonstration in wound care treatments. After this webinar, the learner will be able to:

Identify the role of proper wound cleansing
Discuss how to select and use non-toxic wound cleansers
Describe advantages of collagen for managing a chronic wound

RedDress Secures Capstone Health Alliance Contract to Expand Access to ActiGraft®

RedDress, a privately held U.S. and Israel-based wound care company, announced today that it has secured a contract with Capstone Health Alliance, one of the nation’s largest regional group purchasing organizations representing 300 hospitals in all 50 U.S. states.

Chronic non-healing wounds impose a significant economic burden on the healthcare system, health care providers, and patients. The ActiGraft® system aims to deliver an affordable and efficacious wound solution to Capstone Health Alliance Members to help improve the health and lives of patients … read more

Evonik Acquires Biomaterials Company JeNaCell

Evonik announced today that it has acquired German biotech company JeNaCell, expanding its biomaterials portfolio with the startup’s biotechnologically derived cellulose. JeNaCell’s biomaterial is used in medical procedures involving wounds and burns as well as in hydro-active skincare treatments.

Evonik first invested in JeNaCell in 2015 through its venture capital arm. With this acquisition, JeNaCell’s portfolio will be integrated into Evonik’s healthcare business, which is shifting from a nutrition and care focus toward system solutions and an expanded division-wide technology platform of natural materials for medical technology. Evonik plans to increase the share of system solutions in its Nutrition & Care division from the current 20% to more than 50% by 2030 … read more

How Will Wound Care Evolve in the Future?

Wound care is expected to cost billions of pounds annually. Wound management products are estimated to be responsible for almost one-quarter of the costs. New approaches to wound management are discussed in this chapter, along with ways in which innovation will improve patient outcomes … read more

Customized, biomedically applicable materials based on tropoelastin for wound care

Customized, biomedically applicable materials based on tropoelastin are being developed in a joint project by Skinomics GmbH from Halle, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg and the Fraunhofer Institute for Microstructure of Materials and Systems IMWS. The material combines biocompatibility, durability, biodegradability and favorable mechanical properties similar to those of skin. Preclinical tests have confirmed that it is suitable for use as a wound dressing material used in the treatment of chronic and complex wounds … read more

Biosensors embedded in bandages could monitor diabetic foot wounds to prevent amputations

It was sparked by a chance conversation. Simon Palfreyman and Manisha Gupta got to talking about their research after a meeting. He’s an expert in wound care and she’s a leader in making biosensors that can be attached to the skin to monitor things like temperature or the presence of germs … Palfreyman, an assistant professor in the Faculty of Nursing, expressed frustration that despite the best efforts of health-care teams, more than a thousand Albertans a year lose their lower limbs to amputation due to complications from diabetic foot ulcers … read more

Evidence in wound care

There is an ever-growing variety of products and devices available to practitioners to improve healing rates and patient outcomes, but practitioners should be able to critically appraise evidence to make appropriate evidence-based changes to practice. This position document reviews the available evidence in wound care, looking especially at the critical appraisal of level 1 evidence, before considering the steps required to translate evidence to practice … read more

Society for Vascular Surgery (SVS) Vascular Annual Meeting

InsiteOne LLC expands relationship with existing customers and closes successful First Quarter of operation

InsiteOne LLC, the leading provider of offsite cloud enterprise imaging archiving solutions, announces today a successful first quarter of operation that included contracting directly with over 50 NTT DATA customers and several resellers, dealers, and partners. While providing world-class cloud outsourcing services to NTT DATA and their customers is a primary focus, InsiteOne is also transitioning those customers and partners who have elected to continue and/or expand their enterprise imaging archiving footprint with InsiteOne directly — many of whom were original customers/partners of InsiteOne 20 years ago.

Doylestown Health (DH), located in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, re-evaluated its complete enterprise imaging needs in the Spring of 2021. As an existing NTT DATA customer for radiology archiving for the past five years, DH was looking for a partner that could help design and execute on its enterprise imaging and cloud strategy … read more

Wound care and dressing selection for pharmacy teams

Pharmacists play a key role and are often the first point of contact for people with wounds, both chronic and acute. During the COVID-19 pandemic, this has only become more apparent.

The burden of wound care is increasing through the ageing population, growing comorbidities and increased skin integrity issues (Guest et al, 2015; Guest et al, 2020), with the annual prevalence of wounds increasing by 71% between 2012/2013 and 2017/2018 (Guest et al, 2020) – and with many people being reluctant to go into the hospital or primary care setting, the key role of the pharmacist will continue to develop and grow … read more

Indian Scientist Develops Advance Wound Dressing Material That Can Treat Diabetic Wounds and Manage Chronic Ones at Competitive Cost

An Indian scientist has developed an advanced wound dressing based on agarose, a natural polymer derived from seaweed agar, for the treatment of infected diabetic wounds and patients suffering from chronic wounds … An Indian scientist has developed an advanced wound dressing based on agarose, a natural polymer derived from seaweed agar, for the treatment of infected diabetic wounds and patients suffering from chronic wounds … read more

Synedgen Initiates Clinical Trial Assessing Combination of SynePure and Catasyn for the Treatment of Partial Thickness Burns

Synedgen, a biotechnology company using glycopolymer chemistry to develop therapeutics that enhance and control signaling in the innate immune system, today announced the initiation of a randomized controlled trial (RCT) to test the safety and effectiveness of SynePure™ Wound Cleanser (SynePure) in combination with Catasyn™ Advanced Technology Hydrogel (Catasyn) for the treatment of superficial partial-thickness burn wounds … This study is an investigator-initiated randomized trial comparing SynePure and Catasyn (intervention group) to the current gold standard treatment, Silvadene (control group). Both groups will receive the same care other than cleansing treatment. Subjects will be recruited from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) Mercy Burn Center adult patient population who have sustained superficial partial-thickness burn wounds. Dr. J. Peter Rubin, MD, the Chair of Plastic Surgery at UPMC, is the principal investigator for this study. The trial is being funded by the Defense Health Agency (DHA) through the US Army Medical Research and Development Command’s (USAMRDC) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program to improve the current treatment of burn wounds, particularly to meet a gap in the early acute phase of treatment and will potentially increase the technological readiness level of these products … read more

Infection-Related Hospitalizations High for Adults With Diabetes

People with diabetes may face a higher risk for hospitalization for any infection, a new analysis suggested.

In a prospective study of over 12,000 middle-age adults, those with diabetes had a 67% higher risk for infection-related hospitalization compared with adults free of diabetes over the course of nearly 30 years (HR 1.67, 95% CI 1.52-1.83), reported Elizabeth Selvin, PhD, MPH, of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore, and colleagues … read more

FDA participates in new ‘collaborative communities’ to address emerging challenges in medical devices

Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced participation in several new collaborative communities aimed at addressing challenges in patient health care. Collaborative communities are a continuing forum where private and public sector representatives of the community work together on medical device challenges to achieve common objectives and outcomes.

“We’re pleased to announce the progress we’ve made with participation in collaborative communities. These collaborations with diverse stakeholders are not only a strategic priority for the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health, they also provide much needed forums for deep discussion and solution-driven initiatives to tackle important issues within the medical device ecosystem,” said Jeff Shuren, M.D., J.D., director of the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health. “The insights and outcomes developed by these groups will have long-standing impacts on public health.” … read more

Strategies to reduce practice variation in wound assessment and management: The T.I.M.E. Clinical Decision Support Tool

This document seeks to help clinicians support those who do not have specialist wound training to accurately assess patients and their wounds and arrive at a broad-based, systematic rationale that will ultimately help reduce variations in clinical decision-making. The T.I.M.E. Clinical Decision Support Tool provides a structured approach to wound bed preparation … Download

Documentation Of In-Office Imaging

Upon performing reviews of colleagues’ documentation practices, one consistent deficiency I find is the documentation that accompanies in-office imaging, namely X-ray and ultrasound studies. Each payer may have their own guidelines, but most follow the guidelines promulgated by Medicare in the Medicare Benefit Policy Manual, Chapter 15, Section 80.

These guidelines include the requirement of a written order in the medical record for the imaging study. This order must include … read more

An Autologous Protein-Based Topical Ointment for Hard-to-Heal Skin Wounds

There is increasing evidence regarding the wound healing potential of platelet-derived autologous by-products. We provide preliminary data regarding the use of a new plasma rich in growth factors–derived autologous topical ointment for the management of hard-to-heal wounds … read more

The joint EWMA & Journées Cicatrisations Virtual Conference

Leading up to next year’s conference in Paris the EWMA and the SFFPC will hold a Joint EWMA & Journées Cicatrisations VIRTUAL Conference on 26-27 October 2021.

With both the Virtual Conference in the autumn and the Conference in Paris in 2022, we can continually bring high-level scientific education to the wound care community and facilitate the knowledge sharing that will ultimately benefit patients around the world … read more

SkinTE® Met Primary and Secondary Endpoints in Final Analysis from Diabetic Foot Ulcer Trial

SALT LAKE CITY–(BUSINESS WIRE)–PolarityTE, Inc. (Nasdaq: PTE) today announced final data from a multi-center randomized controlled trial evaluating treatment of Diabetic Foot Ulcers (DFU) with its investigational product SkinTE® plus standard of care (SOC) vs SOC alone (NCT03881254). The trial met the primary endpoint of wound closure at 12 weeks and secondary endpoint of Percent Area Reduction (PAR) assessed at 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 weeks. 100 participants were evaluated across 13 sites with 50 participants receiving SkinTE plus SOC and 50 receiving SOC alone. PolarityTE is pleased to announce today the final analysis of the full data set, which includes:

Primary Endpoint: 70% (35/50) of participants receiving SkinTE plus SOC had wound closure at 12 weeks versus 34% (17/50) of participants receiving SOC alone (p=0.00032)
Secondary Endpoint: Percent Area Reduction (PAR) assessed at 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 weeks was significantly greater for the SkinTE plus SOC treatment group vs SOC alone (p=0.009)
90% (45/50) of SkinTE plus SOC treated participants received a single application of SkinTE
Treatment with SkinTE plus SOC increased the odds of wound closure by 5.37 times versus SOC (p=0.001)

Mean (SD) values for PAR at weeks 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 by treatment group

Week	SkinTE	SOC
4	74.0 (27.63)	22.0 (149.92)
6	82.9 (26.35)	21.2 (160.60)
8	80.7 (35.16)	26.8 (147.42)
10	79.7 (54.07)	45.6 (114.18)
12	84.3 (39.46)	50.5 (92.24)

read more

Inflammatory Biomarkers Levels in T2DM Emirati Patients with Diabetic Neuropathy

Previous studies have suggested the involvement of chronic low‐grade inflammation in the pathogenesis of diabetic neuropathy (DNP). However, none of these studies have examined the levels of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients with confirmed diagnosis of neuropathy. Therefore, the present study aims to investigate the levels of MCP-1 along with IL-6, IL-8 and TGF-β in patients with T2DM and confirmed neuropathy and identify correlations, if any, between MCP-1 and other parameters … read more

Novel discovery describes the mechanisms of wound detection in the body

A new study from Vanderbilt University researchers has established a novel way to understand how the body discovers and responds to wounds. The research was led by graduate student James O’Connor and Professor Andrea Page-McCaw in the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, and Shane Hutson, chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy and professor of physics and biological sciences … read more

InsiteOne LLC expands relationship with existing customers and closes successful First Quarter of operation

Pressure Injuries (Pressure Ulcers) and Wound Care

Although the terms decubitus ulcer, pressure sore, and pressure ulcer have often been used interchangeably, the National Pressure Injury Advisory Panel (NPIAP; formerly the National Pressure Ulcer Advisory Panel [NPUAP]) currently considers pressure injury the best term to use, given that open ulceration does not always occur. [1] According to the NPIAP, a pressure injury is localized damage to the skin and underlying soft tissue, usually over a bony prominence or related to a medical or other device. It can present as intact skin or an open ulcer and may be painful. It occurs as a result of intense or prolonged pressure or pressure in combination with shear … read more

Wound Assessment: Think Like a Detective

Comprehensive wound assessment is analogous to a detective processing a crime scene. The scene is secured (patient scheduled for an evaluation); the scene is processed (patient history is established); evidence is collected and identified (tests, measures, special tests and/or diagnostics are performed) and a working theory and report is generated to ascertain what transpired and what next steps need to be taken. This is akin to establishing a differential diagnosis, determining contributing factors and creating a plan of care to manage the wound and the patients’ medical needs … read more

Evaluation of Wound Healing Activity of Methanolic Crude Extract and Solvent Fractions of the Leaves of Vernonia auriculifera Hiern

Medicinal plants play an important role in treating various diseases. Vernonia auriculifera Hiern is one of the medicinal plants used traditionally for the management of wounds. However, there were no scientific reports documented so far on the wound healing activities to substantiate the claim. Thus, the present study provides a scientific evaluation for the wound healing potential of the crude extract as well as solvent fractions of the leaves of Vernonia auriculifera Hiern … –

Skin closure device aids wound care in a variety of knee procedures

On a daily basis, surgeons are faced with different options for wound closure. Traditionally, surgical incision closure involved sutures or metal staples.

‘The Shoe Project’: Empowering Global Communities One Step at a Time

The Boston-based women empowerment media platform, Women Who Win, recently launched a charity program, “The Shoe Project,” in which they provide footwear and health education to underserved global communities. Currently, India has a slum population of over 80 million people, and slum residents have to walk miles every day to find backbreaking and grueling labor. They often work without proper (or any) footwear. Additionally, there is a significant population of women in slums and villages who live and work barefoot.

As a co-founder of Women Who Win, co-founder, and a podiatrist, this inspired the team to provide good quality, podiatrist-approved and weather appropriate shoes to these communities because proper footwear is essential in preventing foot disease, infections, and amputations … read more

Negative Pressure Wound Therapy Reduced Amputation Risk for Patient With Diabetic Wound

A patient with a diabetic foot wound who underwent negative pressure wound therapy experienced good healing, reduced amputation risk, and no wound infection, suggesting the treatment method could be effective in other patients with similar wounds.

A patient who received negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) after undergoing surgical debridement for a diabetic wound saw improvements in healing capabilities and reduced risks of limb amputation, according to a recent case report published in SAGE Open Medical Case Reports.

The report lends further support to previously published research that has shown NPWT to be effective at decreasing healing time, reducing ulcer area, and increasing healing rates of ulcers. NPWT has also been shown to aid patients with foot ulcers in achieving complete ulcer closure better than advanced moist wound therapy … –

50th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society for Wound Healing

COMPLEX PATIENTS & WOUNDS

WOCTalk LIVE! A Quarterly Membership Discussion

If you’re familiar with WOCTalk, the official podcast of WOCN, and you’re interested in hearing all the latest news from your Community of OpportunityTM, you’ll enjoy our new quarterly, members-only live discussion in this exciting format! Join us on August 11th for a virtual members-only business meeting where you will hear about the state of the WOCN Society and exciting new initiatives that are on the horizon. This virtual event is open and free to WOCN members only and will include Q&A time with the speakers; registration is required … read more

Introduction to the work of IWGDF Guidelines

Every 20 seconds somewhere in the world someone loses a leg due to the complications of diabetes. After such amputations, over half of these people will die within 5 years. At this moment, millions of people with diabetes suffer from poorly healing foot ulcers, which usually develop as a result of several factors. Successfully managing these ulcers, or, even better, preventing them, depends on the close collaboration of various types of health professionals; they must integrate up-to-date care in their specialty into an effective multidisciplinary foot team. The key factors for optimal outcomes are that team members share common goals and follow evidence-based, comprehensive guidelines … read more

High-Intensity Laser Therapy Deemed Effective for Chronic Refractory Wounds, Research Says

High-intensity laser therapy (HILT) combined with wound dressing was superior to conventional wound care, according to a recent study.

High-intensity laser therapy (HILT) is a promising treatment for chronic refractory wounds and should be considered for use with other treatments, according to a study published in BMJ Open.

According to the researchers, HILT does not only reduce wound size. It can also shorten wound healing time, accelerate inflammatory absorption, and increase collagen synthesis and tensile strength. “The therapeutic effects of HILT on chronic refractory wounds are significant and far more superior to those of conventional wound dressing,” the authors said.

Low-level laser therapy (LLLT) has been used on skin wounds … read more

Diabetic foot ulceration: an avoidable complication

At present, more than 380 million people worldwide have diabetes. By 2035, this will rise to 592 million. Some 77% of these people live in low- and middle-income countries.1 In emerging countries, in particular, health-care services are often difficult to access, and finding suitable therapies for diabetes can be challenging. Inadequate treatment of diabetes leads to complications such as diabetic foot syndrome (DFS). For an individual with diabetes, the lifetime risk of developing foot ulcers is at least 15%.2 In western countries, DFS remains the most common reason for hospitalisation of patients with diabetes. In addition, DFS is the major cause of non-traumatic lower limb amputation. This supplement aims to improve understanding of DFS and to present essential aspects of prevention, diagnosis and treatment … read more

Nutritional Supplementation in Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Populations: What Are the Options When Food Is Just Too Expensive?

Appropriately balanced nutrition is a cornerstone of high-quality wound care, and this isn’t a new revelation. Nearly all modern wound centers include some version of nutritional screening, along with ever-expanding recommendations regarding overall protein intake, complex carbohydrate needs, and micronutrient supplementation as clinical evidence for these is presented … read more

PURE PPI SURVEYS – CAN YOU HELP?

Imperial College London are looking to undertake public and patient involvement for PURE (Exercise to Prevent Venous Ulcer Recurrence) and they are asking for your help!

By completing the short surveys you will be helping the team design a new study looking at different ways to manage leg ulcers.

Patient Survey – click here
Healthcare Provider Survey – click here

Psychophysiology: Connecting Skin, Wounds, Aging, and Depression

Skin and wound care involves treating the whole person who is wounded, as well as the components of local wound care. Included in the Wound Bed Preparation model, patient-centered concerns are the subject of several articles in this month’s issue.

The original conceptual psychocutaneous disease framework developed by dermatologist-psychoanalyst Dr Caroline Koblenzer1 was further refined by Drs John Koo and Lebwohl2 with three distinct categories … read more

Factors Involved with Formulating a Multidisciplinary, Team-based Approach in Wound Care

In this video, Natalia Cineas, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, discusses her SAWC session “Calling All Stakeholders: Involving the Entire Team in Pressure Injury Prevention” where she provides a brief explanation of what factors are considered and involved when formulating or making the switch to a multidisciplinary, team-based approach … Watch

Older Adults More Likely to Develop Chronic Wounds, Research Shows

Older adults are at a higher risk of developing chronic wounds due to complications associated with aging, research published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society showed.

Chronic wounds can be defined as wounds that fail to re-establish anatomic and functional skin integrity over 1–3 months through a timely reparative process. Overlapping descriptions and different wound categories makes understanding the prevalence of chronic wounds difficult, but data published in 2017 revealed that chronic wounds affect 5.7 million Americans and incur annual costs of $20 billion … read more

JWC Masterclass on Electrical Stimulation Webinar

This Masterclass will introduce the concept of electrical stimulation, delivered via the Accel-Heal device, to new markets. Key opinion leaders in wound care will demystify the concept of electrical stimulation, explaining its anti-inflammatory processes in an accessible way.

You will find out how this advanced therapy can be safely and effectively used as adjunct to standard care, to promote healing and reduce pain in recalcitrant wounds.

We will also explain how the device can be incorporated into existing care pathways … read more

Integra LifeSciences Announces Positive Clinical Outcomes for PriMatrix® Dermal Repair Scaffold for the Management of Diabetic Foot Ulcers

Integra LifeSciences Holdings Corporation (Nasdaq: IART), a leading global medical technology company, today announced positive clinical outcomes for PriMatrix® Dermal Repair Scaffold for the management of hard to heal diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs). This study is one of the largest DFU randomized controlled trials (RCTs) ever completed with more than 100 patients per treatment group and demonstrated that in most cases, one application of PriMatrix plus standard of care (SOC) healed 60% of DFUs in 12 weeks versus 35% of DFUs that healed in 12 weeks with SOC for the per protocol analysis.

This data was recently published by lead investigator, John Lantis, M.D., FACS, from Mount Sinai Health System in New York, in the Journal of Wound Care, the definitive wound-care journal and leading source of up-to-date research and clinical information on everything related to tissue viability … read more

Inexpensive collagen-based dressing could help heal chronic wounds

Currently, many chronic wound dressings incorporate harvested natural biological tissue. Obtaining those tissues from donors – and working them into the material – is typically a very complex process. According to Michigan State University (MSU), this means that such dressings may ultimately cost up to US$1,000 each … Seeking a more affordable alternative, an international team led by MSU’s Asst. Prof. Morteza Mahmoudi has instead looked to collagen, which is the main structural protein in the extracellular matrix of the body’s connective tissues … read more

The legacy of the COVID-19 pandemic and potential impact on persons with wounds

COVID-19 has dramatically disrupted the practice of managing individuals with wounds.1 Care has moved onto virtual platforms, rearranging the logistics and economics of running a successful clinical practice and research, and in some contexts,2 redefining what treatments patients with wounds can receive (eg, debridement). Since the start of the pandemic in early 2020, there has been considerable emphasis placed on the implications for patients with wounds in terms of their vulnerability to the virus and potential exposure in health care settings. Many of these are not surprising since most persons with wounds are in the high-risk age groups for COVID-19 … read more

Kent Imaging Inc. Receives Health Canada Approval on SnapshotNIR v3.0

Kent Imaging has announced Health Canada’s approval for SnapshotNIR V3.0 (KD204) – now available for shipping in both official languages. This upgrade provides significant feature enhancements to the imaging technology that advances tissue assessment in acute and chronic wounds. The multitude of features include the ability to image most skin tones (overcoming the melanin barrier), linear and surface area wound measurements, easy report generation with image comparisons, and enhanced patient file management, to name a few.

“As a firmly Canadian company, we are excited to release this enhanced version of SnapshotNIR into the country. This is another critical step in our goal of delivering effective wound care and surgical solutions to care providers and improving patient outcomes,” says Pierre Lemire, Kent’s CEO. “The updates to SnapshotNIR V3.0 will make it easier and faster than ever to bring critical real-time and point-of-care data to the treatment path.”

SnapshotNIR utilizes near-infrared light to determine tissue oxygen saturation (StO2), which is a key indicator of tissue health. Ideal for microcirculation assessment, it conveys a comprehensive picture of the healing capacity of wounds or surgical tissue. This critical information is used to support clinical judgment in choosing, evaluating, and tracking treatment and surgical options throughout the care continuum … read more

Startup turns smartphone camera to wound care

The rise of smartphone has led to a whole host of healthcare applications, from apps that pull in EKG readings to ones that analyze skin lesions. But relatively few are focused on wound care, which can often linger beneath the surface of other health problems.

Carlo Perez, an engineer who worked in 3-D graphics for AMD, began to focus more on wound care after co-founding Swift Medical. He had initially set out to build a broader telemedicine app using computer vision, but began to realize the full scope of the problem after co-founder Dr. Sheila Wang, a dermatologist, took him to a wound clinic … read more

Clinical, Microbiological and Inflammatory Markers of Severe Diabetic Foot Infections

In addition to systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS), various clinical signs, microbiological findings, and inflammatory markers could be associated with severe diabetic foot infections (DFI) … read more

BURR, BENNET LAUNCH WOUND CARE LEGISLATION

Senators Richard Burr (R-N.C.) and Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) have introduced the Better Wound Care at Home Act into the Senate, bipartisan legislation that would update CMS payment rules regarding home-based wound care … The Better Wound Care at Home Act would put disposable items such as disposable negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) devices on par with non-disposable NPWT devices by standardizing the payment methodology nationally … read more

Healiant Training Launches Wound Care Boot Camp Program to Make Wound Care Training and Education Accessible to Everyone

Healiant Training Solutions announces the perfect onramp for anyone seeking to increase their knowledge and competencies in wound care. Whether you are brand new to Wound Care or someone whose been treating wounds for 20 years, the program meets you where you are. Wound Care Boot Camp includes high quality training on basic and advanced topics for individuals and organizations looking to improve their wound care knowledge, and in turn, patient outcomes … High quality wound care education and training can be very expensive, especially the kind of training that leads to accredited clinical credentials and CEs/CMEs. It’s hard to know where to start if you aren’t actively participating in a wound care program. Until now, there has never been a program that meets caregivers and organizations where they are, with the flexibility of starting each person at the appropriate level … read more

Fetal bovine acellular dermal matrix for the closure of diabetic foot ulcers: a prospective randomised controlled trial

The purpose of this clinical trial was to evaluate the safety and efficacy of a fetal bovine acellular dermal matrix (FBADM) plus standard of care (SOC) for treating hard-to-heal diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs). METHOD: A prospective, multi-centre, randomised controlled trial was carried out. The study included a 2-week run-in period, a 12-week treatment phase and a 4-week follow-up phase. The primary endpoint was complete wound closure at 12 weeks … read more

The role of non-medicated dressings for the management of wound infection

There is growing concern regarding the treatment of infection, caused by the rise of antimicrobial resistance. This position document looks at current treatment approaches to identifying and treating biofilm in wounds, focusing on the mechanism of action and role of non-medicated wound dressings (NMWDs) within antimicrobial stewardship practices and evidence that supports their effectiveness … Download

Call for abstracts. Wounds UK, Harrogate 2021

Wounds UK are pleased to announce the call for abstracts for the 2021 Wounds UK Annual Conference, held at the Harrogate Convention Centre, which will be held on 8-10 November 2021 at the Harrogate International Centre.

To submit your abstract use the following link: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/WUKH21

Poster presentations will be presented on electronic poster displays only, no hard copy posters will be on display.
Entries for the e-poster exhibition require you to submit an abstract. Every entry received will automatically be considered for the Wounds UK Award for Excellence 2021.

Quick Guide: Using 3M™ Veraflo™ Therapy

This Quick Guide outlines treatment pathway for using 3M™ Veraflo™ Therapy, a product that combines the benefits of negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) with other 3M™ dressings … Download

When A Chronic, Painful Wound Is Actually Pyoderma Gangrenosum

Pyoderma gangrenosum (PG) is a rare inflammatory skin condition that is difficult to diagnose. Currently, it is a “diagnosis of exclusion.”1 Presentation of a patient with a red, hot, swollen foot, ankle or leg is not uncommon for the foot and ankle provider, however, misdiagnosis and delayed diagnosis are common in cases of PG. In a retrospective study, 39 percent of patients who initially received a diagnosis of PG were ultimately found to have a prior alternate diagnosis … read more

Multiple Interventions for Diabetic Foot Ulcer Treatment (MIDFUT) trial: benefits of involvement for patients and clinicians

Pragmatic diabetic foot ulcer research is key to enhancing clinical expertise and efficiency, patient experience and improved wound healing. Delivery of novel adjuvant therapies in a clinic setting can be challenging, both at clinical and organisational levels. There are many benefits to patients and clinicians from being involved in research. The aim of this article is to present the Multiple Interventions for Diabetic Foot Ulcer Treatment (MIDFUT) trial, describe its purpose, the project implementation and how it is overcoming the challenges of delivering novel therapies in a clinic setting, and the potential benefits to patients and staff … read more

Journal of Wound Management – July 2021 issue

Welcome to the July 2021 issue of the Journal of Wound Management. Official journal of the European Wound Management Association

This issue of the Journal of Wound Management includes seven original manuscripts. the full issue can be accessed here: Wound of Wound Management. No 22, vol. 2, July 20221

Multicentre clinical trial to explore efficacy of hyperbaric oxygen for preventing ICU admission, morbidity and mortality in adult patients with COVID-19

INTRODUCTION: COVID-19 may cause severe pneumonitis and trigger a massive inflammatory response that requires ventilatory support. The intensive care unit (ICU)-mortality has been reported to be as high as 62%. Dexamethasone is the only of all anti-inflammatory drugs that have been tested to date that has shown a positive effect on mortality. We aim to explore if treatment with hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) is safe and effective for patients with severe COVID-19. Our hypothesis is that HBO can prevent ICU admission, morbidity and mortality by attenuating the inflammatory response. The primary objective is to evaluate if HBO reduces the number of ICU admissions compared with best practice treatment for COVID-19, main secondary objectives are to evaluate if HBO reduces the load on ICU resources, morbidity and mortality and to evaluate if HBO mitigates the inflammatory reaction in COVID-19 … –

Wound Care: Wearable Sensors and Systems for Wound Healing-Related pHand Temperature Detection

Wound healing is a delicate tissue regeneration procedure that entails numerous changes in various physiological parameters.

FREMONT, CA: Wearable sensors and systems refer to devices that can detect minute amounts of biological or chemical analytes and convert chemical reactions or physical changes into usable signals (optical or electrical signals, for example) following predefined rules. Wearable sensors/systems for monitoring markers in or around the wound environment can provide real-time symptom information and hold promise for therapy studies, which also meets the World Union of Wound Healing Societies’ requirement that “diagnostic tools be moved into the clinic or patient’s home to ensure optimal care is provided for patients with wounds.” Researchers have developed various wearable sensors/systems based on optical (fluorescence, colorimetry, etc.) or electrical (impedance, potentiometry, amperometry, etc.) mechanisms integrated with conventional wound dressings to form innovative wound dressings. These smart wound dressings convert changes in these biomarkers into visual or electrical signals, allowing for real-time monitoring of wound healing … read more

Nursing Skill Check: Wound Care Dressing Change

“Wound Care Dressing Change with Irrigation and Packing: Before beginning this procedure always perform the following steps to ensure patient safety. Perform hand hygiene, provide patient privacy, introduce yourself, use two patient identifiers, verify allergy status, perform environmental safety check, ensure proper body mechanics, gather all supplies, provide patient education. Assess the patient’s condition, including the dressing and wound, as well as the pain level. If needed, medicate with analgesic 30 minutes before procedure, if medication is to be given P O or IV. Explain the procedure to patient.

3M V.A.C.® Therapy vs Other NPWT: Understand What a Recent Large-Scale Economic Analysis Tells Us About Costs

When selecting an NPWT provider, it’s important to understand the costs associated with this decision, in addition to the clinical evidence.

In this webinar, you will hear from the author of a recent large-scale retrospective financial analysis titled, “Comparison of Healthcare Costs Associated With Patients Receiving Traditional Negative Pressure Wound Therapies in the Post-Acute Setting.”

The participants in this webinar will:

Learn some of the latest real-world data comparing 3M V.A.C.® therapy with other NPWT, including a comparison of
- Total costs to treat
- Wound-related costs
- Average length of therapy

View webinar start time in your timezone

Innovation Technology in Pressure Injury Prevention – PODCAST

Hospital acquired pressure injuries (HAPIs) represent a significant source of morbidity, mortality, and cost burden. In this podcast, Laura Swoboda, DNP, APNP, FNP-C, CWOCN-AP, discusses a new, innovative technology called Leaf, the wearable patient monitoring device for pressure injury prevention …. listen

Wound Bed Preparation Best Practices: Optimizing the Wound For Closure

Wound bed preparation is an important component of wound management. Gaps in knowledge of how and why to prepare a wound bed properly for conventional or advanced wound care modalities may delay or impede healing outcomes. This presentation will describe how to prepare a wound bed properly to allow for optimal healing. It will define the term “wound bed preparation” and how it can aid in the management of tissue necrosis and maintain a proper bioburden balance of the wound’s environment. The concept of “TIME” will be used to evaluate a wound’s readiness to progress into the healing phases. The healing phases of hemostasis, inflammation, proliferation, and maturation will be reviewed, and the focus of each phase when preparing the wound bed for treatment will also be discussed. The presentation will conclude by outlining methods of preparing a wound bed for conventional or advanced treatment modalities, including “BEAMS” debridement methods, conventional and advanced dressings, cellular products, and wound vacuum application … Register Now

Watch Jenny Hurlow’s Report on the Treatment Plan (57-year-old woman who presented with a suspected insect bite)

My goal of care with this six‑week‑old wound on this very anxious patient was to support healing while limiting aggressive debridement to try to mitigate her anxiety. Therefore, the wound hygiene protocol was initiated … I first cleanse the full wound area, including the peri-ulcer skin, with a noncytotoxic antiseptic wound cleanser. Then, I sharply debrided that hard, a sharp cap that you see, and dry fatty necrosis as tolerated by the patient … Then, I refashion the rolled wound edges by abrading the epidermis to promote flattening of the epiboly. Then, I ordered daily dressing changes within an enzymatic debrider … The wound hygiene treatment protocol promotes attention to all aspects of a wound’s healing … read more

DECELLULARISED DERMIS ALLOGRAFT FOR THE TREATMENT OF CHRONIC VENOUS LEG ULCERATION STUDY – RECRUITING ADDITIONAL SITES

Imperial College London are conducting the DAVE study, an RCT to determine whether the use of a decellularised dermis (DCD) allograft in addition to compression therapy, promotes healing in chronic venous leg ulceration compared to compression therapy alone. Participants will be randomised to either compression therapy alone or DCD in addition to compression. Click here to read the study summary for more information.

The study, led by Professor Alun Davies, is being conducted across a number of secondary care sites in the UK. As study recruitment has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the team are now looking to identify additional secondary care sites to recruit to this NIHR portfolio study. Owing to the impact of COVID-19, the team fully understand that potential sites may not be able to proceed with set-up until the latter part of 2021 and are happy to commence discussions in the meantime.

For more information and to find out how you can be part of this important collaboration, please contact Francine Heatley (Trial Manager) at f.heatley@imperial.ac.uk

Refractory Wounds: Systemic Factors Affecting Repair – Iatrogenic Factors (Part 3 of 4)

Refractory wounds are a significant worldwide health problem, affecting 5 to 7 million people per year in the United States alone, as discussed in previous blogs (Part 1, Part 2). Wounds that fail to heal not only impact quality of life, but also impose a significant physical, psychosocial, and financial burden. Additionally, individuals with refractory wounds often experience significant morbidity, and sometimes mortality. Wound infections and amputations are common in this population, and chronic conditions often exist as well … read more

WCW: Using Electrical Stimulation to Treat Wounds

Timolol may be inexpensive, effective wound treatment

Timolol may be an effective and inexpensive treatment for wound healing, according to a poster presented at AAD VMX 2021 … “Timolol may function at multiple levels to enhance wound healing, including through increased angiogenesis, fibroblast function and reepithelization,” Angelina S. Hwang, BS, of Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine, and colleagues wrote … The single-center retrospective study included 33 patients with a mean age of 68.8 years whose wounds were treated with timolol, a beta-adrenergic receptor antagonist. Treatment occurred in the department of dermatology at Mayo Clinic Arizona between January 2014 and November 201 … read more

A Preliminary Exploration of the Efficacy of Gentamicin Sponges in the Prevention and Treatment of Wound Infections

Gentamicin sponges, implantable topical antibiotic agents, are approved for surgical implantation in 54 countries. Since 1985, more than one million patients have been treated with these sponges.1–3 However, despite having been studied for over 30 years, their effectiveness is still disputed … Han et al have found that applying gentamicin-impregnated sponges during spinal operations significantly decreases surgical-site infection (SSI).4 Chang et al have conducted a meta-analysis encompassing 15 randomized control trials and also concluded that gentamicin sponges decrease the rate of SSI.5 Schimmer et al have used a controlled, prospective, randomized double-blind study to investigate the efficacy of gentamicin sponges in sternal wound complications after heart surgery. They enrolled 720 patients and found that gentamicin sponges effectively reduce infection complications … However, several other studies have demonstrated that gentamicin-impregnated sponges cannot reduce SSI, and some researchers have even proposed that the sponges increase the risk of infection. Wouthuyzen-Bakker et al have discussed the efficacy of applying gentamicin-impregnated sponges locally during debridement in early acute periprosthetic joint infections. They found that their application does not reduce the incidence … read more

Why We Depend on One Another in Wound Care

July means different things to different people for different reasons. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the month of July represented the first real month of summer. It signaled the end of the school year, and it was time to have fun. After college graduation, the first day of July for medical students correlates with the first day of medical school classes, and for senior medical students, the beginning of most medical residency programs. This first day of summer can be wrought with both excitement and fear … Prior to starting medical school, I spent the month of June shadowing an emergency room physician at the Pennsylvania State University School of Medicine at the Hershey Medical Center … read more

Usefulness of Procalcitonin in Diagnosing Diabetic Foot Osteomyelitis: A Pilot Study

Infected diabetic foot is the leading cause of hospital admissions for people with diabetes mellitus. Diabetic foot osteomyelitis (DFO) causes high morbidity and significant mortality. Current diagnostic tests for DFO are either expensive, invasive, or of low diagnostic yield. Objective. The objective of the study was to determine whether serum levels of procalcitonin (PCT), an inflammatory marker, differ between DFO and diabetic foot ulcers without osteomyelitis (ie, cellulitis) as controls. The authors also aimed to assess the usefulness of PCT in diagnosing DFO. Methods. A case-control study was designed comparing DFO with diabetic foot cellulitis as the control. Patients were classified as having osteomyelitis and cellulitis based on the International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot diagnostic criteria. Serum inflammatory markers PCT, adiponectin, C-reactive protein-1, osteoprotegerin (OPG), osteopontin (OPN), and interleukin … read more

The Predictive Value of Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte Ratio and Platelet-to-Lymphocyte Ratio Levels of Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy

As defective insulin secretion or impaired biological function, chronic hyperglycemia can cause damage to various tissues and systems, especially eyes, kidneys, blood vessels and nerves.1 Most diabetes patients can be divided into two types. Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM), due to the absolute lack of insulin secretion, can usually be identified by serological evidence and genetic markers of islet autoimmunity. Abnormal inflammation and immune responses are associated with the development of T1DM. Recent study have shown that innate immunity and inflammatory mediators play an important and wide-ranging roles, possibly inhibiting β-cell function,2 promoting subsequent apoptotic processes, and leading to insulin resistance in surrounding tissues … read more

New Study Demonstrates Significantly Increased Healing Rates with NATROX® Oxygen Wound Therapy

Inotec sponsored the study to investigate the impact of NATROX® on previously non healing DFUs. Held across 19 sites in the USA, the trial involved 145 patients with 54% over age 65. The study’s Principal Investigator, Dr. Thomas Serena, is an internationally recognized expert in wound healing. Dr. Serena is former President of the American Professional Wound Care Association and currently CEO of the SerenaGroup®, a leading provider of wound care. Eligible patients had a chronic wound for an average of 23-24 weeks before entering the 12-week therapy period, and over half the participants in the NATROX® group had a history of prior amputation. It is worth noting, the study continuing despite new COVID-19 protocols indicates the ease and simplicity of treatment … read more

High Levels of Oxidative Stress and Skin Microbiome are Critical for Initiation and Development of Chronic Wounds in Diabetic Mice

A balanced redox state is critical for proper healing. Although human chronic wounds are characterized by high levels of oxidative stress (OS), whether OS levels are critical for chronic wound development is not known. For these studies, we used our chronic wound model in diabetic mice that has similar characteristics as human chronic wounds, including naturally developed biofilm. We hypothesize that OS levels in wound tissues are critical for chronic wound initiation and development. We show that increased OS levels in the wound correlate with increased chronicity. Moreover, without increased OS levels, biofilm taken from chronic wounds and placed in new excision wounds do not create chronic wounds. Similarly, high OS levels in the wound tissue in the absence of the skin microbiome do not lead to chronic wounds. These findings show that both high OS levels and bacteria are needed for chronic wound initiation and development … read more

Bromelain-based enzymatic debridement of chronic wounds: Results of a multicentre randomized controlled trial

Chronic wounds are estimated to affect over 6 million people annually in the United States with an estimated annual cost of $25 billion. Debridement represents a key step in their management and is considered a basic necessity to induce the functional process of tissue repair. However, there is an unmet need for an efficient rapid acting non-surgical debridement agent. Bromelain-based enzymatic debridement has been proven to provide an effective, selective and safe non-surgical debridement in deep burns. EscharEx (MediWound Ltd, Yavne, Israel), is a bromelain-based enzymatic debridement agent currently in development for chronic wounds. The aim of this study was to assess its safety and efficacy in chronic wounds. Seventy-three patients suffering from a lower extremity ulcer of diabetic/venous insufficiency/post-surgical/traumatic aetiology were enrolled in a multicentre … read more

NEW! APWCA/ASWC WEBCAST SERIES RELEASED

In the first webcast, Elizabeth Faust, MSN, CRNP, CSWS, CWOCN-AP, DAPWCA, of the American Professional Wound Care Association interviews three leaders of the World Council of Enterostomal Therapists (WCET) on their recent article about the International Ostomy Guideline 2020. The discussion includes the inception of the guideline, the extensive work that went into creating a guideline suitable for resource-limited and resource-abundant countries, key takeaways for various members of the healthcare team, and the importance of preoperative education and stoma site marking. Be sure to watch all the way to the end for a big announcement from the WCET.

EB-101 Healed Wounds, Eased Pain Up to Six Years in Trial

Treatment with Abeona Therapeutics‘‘ investigational cell therapy EB-101 led to successful wound healing and eased pain in seven adults with recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (RDEB) who were followed for up to six years in a clinical trial … “The updated Phase 1/2a results showed safety and durable efficacy follow up, with EB-101 treated wounds continuing to show a considerable reduction in both wound burden and associated long-term pain for up to six years,” Vishwas Seshadri, PhD, head of research and clinical development at Abeona, said in a press release.

Wearable Sensor Measures Light Emission on Skin to Monitor Tissue Oxygenation

Researchers have combined an oxygen-sensing film and machine learning to create a wearable sensor capable of measuring tissue oxygenation through a person’s skin. Developed by researchers at the Wellman Center for Photomedicine at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, the sensor works by detecting the phosphorescence lifetime and intensity of the acrylic oxygen-sensing film that adheres to the skin … The researchers said that the wireless sensor can monitor oxygen levels on a continuous basis and is easy to operate, making it suitable for remotely monitoring oxygen levels outside of health care settings … –

Essity joins United Nations Foundation expert group in tackling antimicrobial resistance

Hygiene and health company Essity expands its partnership with United Nations (UN) Foundation by joining a cross-industry group that brings together corporate experts in the fight against antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Essity is a global provider of hand hygiene and wound care solutions, essentials in the fight against antimicrobial resistance, one of the greatest global public health threats predicted to be responsible for 10 million annual deaths worldwide by 20501. Essity has been a partner to the United Nations Foundation since 2017 … read more

Abeona Therapeutics Announces Updated EB-101 Phase 1/2a Clinical Results in Recessive …

Abeona Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: ABEO), a fully-integrated leader in gene and cell therapy, today announced updated Phase 1/2a clinical trial results up to six years following treatment with Abeona’s investigational EB-101 for recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (RDEB). The data showed that investigator assessment of wound healing of 50% or greater from baseline was present in 69% of treated wounds (n=18/26) at 3 years, 93% (n=14/15) at 4 years, 80% (n=12/15) at 5 years, and 80% (n=4/5) at 6 years. The results were reported in a poster, titled “Long-Term Healing, Pain Reduction, and Patient-Reported Outcomes in Recessive Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa Following EB-101 Treatment of Large, Chronic Wounds,” at the Society for Pediatric Dermatology (SPD) 46th Annual Meeting … read more

Impact of repeated remote ischemic conditioning on diabetic foot ulcers: A proof-of-concept study

Patients with a diabetic foot ulcer (DFU) suffer disabilities and are at increased risk for lower extremity amputation. Current standard of care includes debridement, topical antibiotics, and weight off-loading—still resulting in low rates of healing. Previous small-scale research has indicated that repeated remote ischemic conditioning (rRIC) is a novel modality that delivers significantly higher DFU healing rates. This proof-of-concept study was performed to expand the research on the utility of rRIC as an adjunctive treatment in the healing of chronic DFUs. Forty subjects (41 wounds) received rRIC treatment three times weekly in addition to standard of care for 12 weeks. Subjects that did not heal in this time frame but had a significant reduction in wound size were eligible to continue for an 8-week extension period. By the end of the extension period, 31 of the 41 DFU wounds (75.6%) in this study were determined to be healed. This compares favourably to the 25–30% standard of care average healing rate … read more

Dissemination of microbiota between wounds and the beds of patients with pressure injuries: a cross-sectional study

Pressure injuries (PIs) are localised injuries to the skin and/or underlying tissue caused by sustained pressure1, with a reported prevalence of 9–14.5% in the elder care setting2–4. Although their prevalence is declining due to advances in prevention and treatment5, up to 30% of PIs develop infections, which is a life-threatening complication6–8. Therefore, controlling wound infections is a crucial intervention after the development of PIs … Most patients with PIs are compromised hosts due to old age and malnutrition. Thus, treatment directed at improving the overall condition of the patient (e.g., nutritional support) is provided to treat those with PIs. Additionally, breaking the route of transmission of bacteria by using dressings is recommended … read more

Diabetic foot ulcer, the effect of resource-poor environments on healing time and direct cost: A cohort study during Syrian crisis

This study was intended to assess the healing time of diabetic foot ulcer (DFU) during what is considered one of the worst humanitarian crises of the 21st century. Researchers examined 1,747 DFUs from the main diabetic foot clinic in Damascus (2014-2019). They conducted SINBAD Classification to grade the severity of ulcers. This study’s findings demonstrate that the environment with resource-poor settings should be added to the traditional risk factors that delay the healing of DFUs for months or even years. There is a need for more studies to analyze low-cost materials that could be cost-effective in applying standard care to the diabetic foot … read more

A Novel Method to Offload Neuropathic Ulcers of the Distal Phalanges in the Presence of First Ray Metatarsal Hypermobility

The standard practice to heal neuropathic ulcers on the toes is to offload the affected areas with special types of therapeutic footwear including shoes and boots to reduce the amount of pressure on the wound. Once healed, the individual wears custom insoles to prevent the development of new wounds. In our practice, we found that some newly healed wounds will reulcerate despite wearing therapeutic footwear. We devised a method to prevent and offload neuropathic foot ulcers on the distal phalanges in the presence of first ray metatarsal hypermobility, a common problem associated with the development of wounds … read more

CMS Assigns APC Reimbursement Code for Kent Imaging’s SnapshotNIR® for Non-Invasive Near-Infrared Imaging Services

Kent Imaging Inc., a leading innovator of medical technology, is pleased to announce that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has released claims submission guidelines for CPT® Codes 0640T-0642T as referenced in the MLN Matters MM12289 … CPT Codes 0640T-0642T are a family of Category III codes specific to SnapshotNIR for non-contact, near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy studies of flap or wound for image acquisition, interpretation, and reporting. The codes 0640T and 0642T which include a component on image interpretation, have been classified as reimbursable at the discretion of the payor based on medical necessity. The code 0641T, a procedural code for image capture, was assigned to the APC grouper code 5732 for utilization by outpatient facilities … read more

When Should I Perform Point-of-Care Fluorescence Imaging of Wound Bioburden? Guidelines Based on Delphi Consensus

Bacteria and biofilm plague chronic wounds, impair the healing process, and can increase the risk of infection and antibiotic overprescribing. Fluorescence imaging of bacterial burden (MolecuLight i:X) is the only point-of-care solution to visualize the presence of significant bacterial burden in wounds. This information, when added to standard of care, supports informed clinical decision making and more proactive bacterial management practices. This point-of-care imaging technology is quickly becoming a standard in wound care … View webinar start time in your timezone.

EB Affects All Aspects of Daily Life, Patients Say in Interview Study

Ways to improve the quality of life for people with epidermolysis bullosa (EB) are needed, as those living with the disorder report a range of psychological and social impacts … In a series of interviews, a group of children and young adults with EB described their disease as significantly affecting daily life and interactions at school, within the family, and in society at large … Findings are detailed in the study “Psychosocial impact of epidermolysis bullosa on patients: A qualitative study,” published in the journal Pediatric Dermatology … read more

Clinical Aspects of Placental-derived Hyaluronic Acid (HA) in the Treatment of Hard-to-Heal Wounds

This session will review the science behind placental-based hyaluronic acid derived from the umbilical cord. In addition, we will do an in depth review of a peer-reviewed, published prospective randomized, controlled study demonstrating the clinical benefits of Purion processed umbilical cord in the treatment of chronic wounds and finally review and discuss real world case examples … Register

What are the Benefits of Moist Wound Healing?

The process of keeping a wound in an optimally moist environment to aid faster healing is known as moist wound healing. According to studies, the moist wound heals faster than the wounds allowed to dry out … Studies have demonstrated that moist wound healing is more beneficial than treating wounds in a dry environment, and clinical data has backed this up for years. Since a moist environment keeps new skin cells alive and encourages cell renewal, moist wound healing has been demonstrated to enhance re-epithelialization and can result in a reduction of scar formation … In addition, treating wounds in a moist environment looks promising for generating a microenvironment that promotes regenerative healing without the formation of scars. Clinicians frequently choose dressings that establish and regulate a moist wound environment for these reasons … read more

The Role of Physical and Occupational Therapy in Pressure Injury Prevention

Physical and occupational therapists are not always thought of when it comes to pressure injury prevention; however, their training and knowledge makes them key players in the interprofessional team. Pressure injuries are costly medical issues that can impact a patient’s ability to rehabilitate. Therapists need to understand the causes of pressure injuries to help reduce a patient’s risk. Nursing uses risk assessment instruments to identify patients who are risk for developing a pressure injury. Many of the elements that therapists address in an evaluation and daily treatment are those that are also being addressed in the risk assessment instruments. This article provides an overview to help therapists recognize ways to incorporate pressure injury prevention into their evaluation and daily practice and effectively communicate with other health care professionals … read more

Epidemiology, Pathophysiology, and Management Strategies of Neonatal Wound Care

Guidelines for neonatal skin care are scarce, and there is no consensus on the best management practices for neonatal skin breakdown. This review presents the pathology and phases of wound healing, reasons for neonatal skin fragility, and approaches to recognition of commonly encountered neonatal wounds. This review also provides general strategies for neonatal wound prevention, care, dressing, and management to avoid further damage to the fragile neonatal skin. The importance and role of retaining moisture in expediting wound healing is discussed, as well as updated classifications on how to grade and assess pressure ulcers and the role of negative pressure wound therapy and silver dressings. Lastly, this review discusses prevention and treatment options for surgical wounds, intravenous extravasation wounds, congenital wounds, and thermal injuries, in addition to how to differentiate these wounds from the common diaper dermatitis and contact dermatitis … read more

Thermal Imaging Offers Early Alert for Chronic Wound Care

THE COST OF DIABETIC FOOT ULCERS

The annual cost of diabetes is tremendously expensive; according to the American Diabetes Association, it was $245 billion in 2012.1 While nearly $70 billion of this figure was associated with reduced workforce productivity, the remaining $176 billion occurred as excess healthcare expenditures.1 These costs can, in turn, be divided into those associated with treatment of the disease itself, those associated with chronic complications of diabetes, and those native to O&P professional interests: foot ulcers … read more

Lack of access to vascular specialists creates major disparities in amputation rates across the USA

Speaking on current trends in amputation rates with critical limb-threatening ischaemia (CLTI) patients, Misty Humphries (Sacramento, USA) tells Vascular News that while Medicare data shows that amputation rates are decreasing across the USA overall, there are “certain geographical areas” that have high rates, with many of these “located in the south” or in regions that “may not have vascular specialists” … “The disparities that we see in my research I believe are truly access-based,” says Humphries, further drilling down to emphasise health insurance, time and other factors such as appropriate preventive care measures that come into play contributing to the increased risk of amputation … read more

Optimising wound care through patient engagement

Patient engagement is a crucial and timely topic, both in terms of wound healing (and, in some cases, symptom management), and in improving individuals’ experiences of the process. This document aims to provide clear guidance in listening and engaging with individuals, and thus optimising the care experience for all key stakeholders, of which the patient is the most important. The document was developed with input from both healthcare professionals and individuals using healthcare services … read more

The Annual Scientific Meeting (The National) is coming to Denver, July 29–August 1

Get ready to explore new frontiers with APMA in 2021! The Annual Scientific Meeting (The National) is coming to Denver, July 29–August 1. The must-attend meeting for every podiatrist will offer attendees up to 29.5 CECH with a diverse educational program touching on all aspects of foot and ankle surgery and medicine.

At this point in time APMA is closely monitoring the COVID public health crisis and preparing for multiple scenarios. We hope to see our attendees in person for four days of learning and networking. However, given the uncertainty of the situation and recognizing the need to accommodate everyone’s personal level of comfort, we are planning a hybrid event that will allow virtual attendees to concurrently stream the event.

Check out the preliminary program, and watch your APMA publications for more information. Registration for The National is now open.

A Collaborative Call for Changes in Reimbursement Policies for pressure injury

A Collaborative Call for Changes in Reimbursement Policies for pressure injury coauthored by leadership from NPIAP, AAWC and WOCN has been published in the Journal of Patient Safety.

This paper examines reimbursements to improve pressure injury prevention for
CMSGov.

Capitated payment for prevention bundles
Deferred payments for safe discharge
Equal sided risk mode that rewards good performance

Read the full paper here

WOUND CARE Q&A: Progress In Wound Care And Limb Salvage: Yesterday, Today And Beyond

Medicine is a field of continuous innovation, and limb salvage is no exception. Here the panelists discuss their observations and experiences over their years of practice regarding developments that have made an impact for patients, along with their thoughts on what the future will bring … read more

Advanced Wound Dressings with Integrated Healing Sensors

These antimicrobial, multifunctional dressings include fluorescent sensors that glow brightly when exposed to UV light on the onset of infection and can be used for monitoring the healing process … A research team from RMIT University has developed smart dressings that manipulate the potent antifungal and antibacterial properties of magnesium hydroxide. When compared to silver-based dressing, the smart dressings can be produced cost-effectively but are equally effective in fighting fungi and bacteria, thanks to their antimicrobial power that lasts up to a week … read more

Thermal imaging offers early alert for chronic wound care

New research shows thermal imaging techniques can predict whether a wound needs extra management, offering an early alert system to improve chronic wound care … It is estimated that 1-2% of the population will experience a chronic wound during their lifetime in developed countries – in the US, chronic wounds affect about 6.5 million patients with more than US$25 billion each year spent by the healthcare system on treating related complications … The Australian study shows textural analysis of thermal images of venous leg ulcers (VLUs) can detect whether a wound needs extra management as early as week two for clients receiving treatment at home … read more

When Should I Perform Point-of-Care Fluorescence Imaging of Wound Bioburden? (webinar)

Pandemic leads to changes in delivery of care for diabetic foot infections

The COVID-19 pandemic led to early disruptions in diabetic foot care during lockdowns, and cases of diabetes-associated foot infections increased after lockdowns were lifted, according to a speaker … Brian Schmidt, DPM, an assistant professor of internal medicine in the division of metabolism, endocrinology and diabetes at the University of Michigan School of Medicine, said during a virtual presentation at the American Diabetes Association Scientific Sessions that poor messaging at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic may have kept many patients with diabetic foot conditions from contacting providers about complications, leading to increases in infections after stay-at-home orders were lifted … read more

Next Science Product Featured in Lifetime Channel Program on Treating Chronic Wounds

Next Science (ASX:NXS), an innovative medical technology company and leader in treating biofilm-based infections in humans, today announced new educational broadcast content about chronic infections, which impact 17 million Americans each year. “The Balancing Act,” a lifestyle show that airs on the Lifetime channel, will feature a segment that discusses the costly and debilitating nature of these infections and how physicians can more effectively treat patients suffering from chronic wounds, including diabetic wounds, by using BLASTX, Next Science’s antimicrobial wound gel … In addition to treating diabetic foot and leg ulcers, BLASTX can also be used for stage I-V pressure ulcers, partial- and full-thickness wounds, post-surgical wounds, first and second degree burns, and grafted and donor sites. BLASTX, which uses Next Science’s patented XBIO® Technology, which physically deconstructs the protective shell over the bacterial biofilm matrix, destroys bacteria within the gel and defends from recolonization while maintaining a moist wound environment. BLASTX is non-toxic and lasts up to five days … read more

Decreased Physiological Serum Total Bile Acid Concentrations in Patients with Type 2 Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy

Diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN), one of the most frequent diabetic microvascular complications, is characterized by symmetrical, bilateral distal motor and predominantly sensory abnormality, starting distally and gradually spreading proximally in a glove-and-stocking distribution. It is estimated that DPN would affect approximately 50% in those with over 10 years’ duration.1 DPN has been reported to lead to neuropathic pain, diabetic foot ulcers and lower-limb amputations, all of which contribute to a substantial effect on patient’s quality of life and a significant financial burden. However, other than improving glycemic control, there is no licensed pathogenetic treatment for DPN. Therefore, it would be of great importance if a simple, inexpensive, and reliable indicator is available for the early identification and management of individuals at high risk for DPN in clinical settings, and further effective strategies are formulated to prevent its development and progression … read more

Tips for providing diabetes foot care through telemedicine

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, foot evaluations — including wound debridement, off-loading, radiographs, dressing recommendations and infection control — required in-person visits. With the pandemic closing clinics and canceling hospital services, providers had to explore different ways to continue monitoring people in need of diabetic foot care … At the University of Southern California, providers were forced to make a rapid shift to telemedicine when COVID-19 stay-at-home orders began. In the 6 weeks before the pandemic, all patient contacts for diabetes foot care took place through clinic visits. In the first 6 weeks after COVID-19 lockdowns … read more

Pandemic Underlines Importance of Alternative Support Surfaces in Pressure Wound Care

Hospital Acquired Pressure Injuries (HAPIs) – long a major healthcare problem for hospitalized patients – have the potential to increase with the increasing amount of patients requiring ICU care due to COVID-19. Regardless of primary diagnosis, when immobility, pressure, friction, shear, poor nutrition, and poor profusion plague the hospitalized patient, HAPIs often occur. Each year, more than 2.5 million patients suffer from these injuries, costing the U.S. healthcare system anywhere from $9.1 – 11.6 billion annually … read more

Healogics® Receives Accreditation from American Nurses Credentialing Center

Healogics®, the nation’s leading provider of world-class wound care, is proud to announce its accreditation from the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) …The ANCC Accreditation Program identifies organizations that exhibit excellence in Nursing Continuing Professional Development (NCPD). In order to be awarded accreditation, rigorous standards must be met for providing continuing professional development to registered nurses. Healogics earned this distinction by promoting excellence in nursing and patient safety, and providing nurses with the knowledge and skills to help improve care and patient outcomes … “We are proud to achieve the highly regarded Accreditation from ANCC,” said Healogics Vice President of Clinical and Quality Process Excellence, Carolyn M. Shinn … Healogics nurses will have the opportunity to participate in the highest level of education to meet certification or licensure requirements, as ANCC-accredited continuing education is the most impressive and viable strategy in improving professional nursing practice … read more

From the Editors’ Desk

Over the last year, COVID-19 has forced healthcare professionals to rapidly change the way they think and practice. This includes quickly assessing patients and reevaluating clinical situations with new eyes for optimal resource utilization and effective patient care options. Some facilities have reassigned professional personnel, and the entire industry has had to rethink traditional clinical paradigms … read more

Dr. Alisa Savetamal Presents the Health Economics of Allograft VS

In this webinar Alisa Savetamal, MD FACS will present the health economics of allograft vs. NovoSorb BTM. She will review two patients with full thickness injuries to both legs. Each patient received serial allograft applications on one leg and BTM on the other. This presentation will review the economics of the entire patient experience including product cost, repeat OR cost, impact on the surgeon, and impact on the patient throughout the healing process. This presentation was originally scheduled during ABA 2020 … read more

New research a ‘step change’ for diabetes patients

Millions of people with diabetes are at risk of developing foot ulcers, which often lead to amputations and other health complications. Now, Scientists from the Centre for Biomechanics and Rehabilitation Technologies (CRBT) have developed a new method to reliably detect this risk without the need for complex electronic in-shoe sensors … read more

How can we deliver oxygen to wounds?

How does oxygen work in wound healing? We are all familiar with how necessary oxygen is for life in general. A few minutes of holding your breath (if you can last that long) proves the point quickly. We are taught the basics of how oxygen is important for essential processes such as energy conversion in the adenosine triphosphate (ATP) cycle, yet not typically processes in which oxygen plays a critical role in wound healing … read more

New Feature in Wound Care Software Fills Patients’ Shopping Carts with Physician-Recommended Nutrition

Wound care physicians often struggle to ensure patients receive the proper nutrition to accelerate wound healing. Intellicure is fighting that struggle by providing physicians unique tools that place recommended nutritional supplements in the hands of patients … Intellicure already automated the prescribing and ordering of medications and durable medical equipment inside its wound care EHR and its recently released SMART wound care app. However, certain nutritional supplements that are clinically proven to support wound management in some patients are sold over the counter. Often these supplement names and quantities are written down for the patient to purchase on their own time, leaving the physician to wonder if the patient ordered the correct products and quantities needed for a speedy recovery … read more

Fluorescence in situ Hybridization (FISH) in the Microbiological Diagnostic of Deep Sternal Wound Infection (DSWI)

Postoperative mediastinitis after cardiac surgery is still a devastating complication. Insufficient microbiological specimens obtained by superficial swabbing may only detect bacteria on the surface, but pathogens that are localized in the deep tissue may be missed. The aim of this study was to analyze deep sternal wound infection (DSWI) samples by conventional microbiological procedures and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) in order to discuss a diagnostic benefit of the culture-independent methods and to map spatial organization of pathogens and microbial biofilms in the wounds … –

Swift Medical launches integrated digital wound care solution with Homecare Homebase

Homecare Homebase (HCHB), the nation’s #1 software for home health and hospice, is partnering with global digital wound care leader Swift Medical to provide high-quality, cost efficient care through an integrated solution. Through this expanded partnership, Swift Medical becomes the exclusively preferred wound care technology partner for HCHB, with an enhanced integration offering to streamline workflows and eliminate double documentation … read more

Debridement

In the English language, the word debridement is used in the specific sense of cleaning a wound of infected, potentially infected, necrotic (dead), eschar (Figure 1), or foreign material (such as fragments of old dressings). To the best of the authors’ knowledge, the word is not used in any other context in English. The word debridement comes from the French language and is even pronounced in English as a French word (de-breed-ment), where it means taking a bridle (the head straps that hold the mouthpiece in place) off a horse … read more

Negative pressure wound therapy for open traumatic wounds

Traumatic wounds (wounds caused by injury) range from abrasions and minor skin incisions or tears, to wounds with extensive tissue damage or loss as well as damage to bone and internal organs. Two key types of traumatic wounds considered in this review are those that damage soft tissue only and those that involve a broken bone, that is, open fractures. In some cases these wounds are left open and negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) is used as a treatment. This medical device involves the application of a wound dressing through which negative pressure is applied and tissue fluid drawn away from the area. The treatment aims to support wound management, to prepare wounds for further surgery, to reduce the risk of infection and potentially to reduce time to healing … read more

Refractory Wounds: Systemic Factors Affecting Repair – Extrinsic Factors (Part 2 of 4)

Refractory wounds are a significant worldwide health problem, affecting 5 to 7 million people per year in the United States alone, as discussed in a prior blog. Wounds that fail to heal not only impact quality of life, but also impose a significant physical, psychosocial, and financial burden. Additionally, individuals with refractory wounds often experience significant morbidity and sometimes mortality. Wound infections and amputations are common in this population, and chronic conditions often exist as well … read more

A Compendium of Perspectives on Diabetes: A Challenge for Sustainable Health in the Modern Era

Diabetes is a chronic illness. Hyperglycemia is the characteristic of this disorder. Diabetes is a global crisis which affects the economy and health of all nations. Over the last decades, the number of individuals living with diabetes has significantly increased worldwide. Asia is a key epicenter of the emerging diabetes epidemic, with China and India the two nations having the highest number of diabetic people. Economic development, modernization, unhealthy diet, population aging, and sedentary lifestyles are the major factors responsible for the increasing diabetes epidemic. Diabetes is associated with several complications, and cardiovascular disease is the most important cause of morbidity and mortality among people with diabetes. These life-threatening problems can be prevented or delayed by proper management of diabetes. Lifestyle modification is an important factor to decrease the diabetes risk. The frequency of diabetic complications will rise if there is a lack of cost-effective and sustainable interventions. Hence, prevention of diabetes and its complications such as diabetic retinopathy and cardiovascular disease … read more

Wound Odor

Wound odor, also referred to as malodor, is typically the result of necrotic tissue or bacterial colonization in the wound bed. Certain dressings like hydrocolloids, also tend to produce a characteristic odor as a result of the chemical reaction that takes place between the dressing and wound exudate, causing odor. While not directly harmful to the patient, wound odor is often indicative of bioburden or other barriers to wound healing. In addition, the psychological effects of malodorous wounds on the patient, relatives, or caregiver can be significant … read more

Employment Opportunities in Wound Care and Oxygen Hyperbaric Therapy

US Wound Care & Hyperbaric Centers strive to provide exceptional wound care in a welcoming environment by contributing to the health and well-being of our patients through collaboration, communication and education. See job opportunities

2,000,000 TWO2 Treatments Milestone Reached as TWO2 Study Is Highlighted in Systemic Review of Topical Oxygen Therapies

“This is another enormous milestone for our company and a testament to the ease-of use and durable clinical efficacy of TWO2 therapy, as well as to the tenacity of our entire dedicated care team. AOTI is proud to have been able to help heal the Diabetic Foot Ulcers and Venous Leg Ulcers of so many high-risk patients safely at home. Effective homecare therapeutics, such as provided by TWO2, have become vital in maintaining continuity-of-care by caregivers for their patients, especially during the recent COVID-19 pandemic,” stated Dr. Mike Griffiths, CEO and Medical Director of AOTI … read more

Refractory Wounds: Etiologic Factors and Management (a Four-Part Series)

Refractory wounds comprise a significant worldwide health problem, affecting 5 to 7 million people per year in the United States alone. Wounds that fail to heal not only impact quality of life but also impose a significant physical, psychosocial, and financial burden. Additionally, individuals with refractory wounds often experience significant morbidity and sometimes mortality. Wound infections and amputations are common in this population, and chronic conditions often exist as well … read more

Adding a Hypochlorous Acid-Preserved Wound Cleanser to the Pressure Injury Management Toolbox: A Case Series

Pressure injuries (PIs) can impair quality of life, and the goal of management is to create an optimal local wound healing environment. PIs can be difficult to manage and are associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Wound cleansing is a routine part of managing these wounds and can aid in the removal of exudate, debris, and contaminants.3 PIs located on the sacrum or ischium are at high risk of infection due to exposure to urine and feces; for these wounds, regular cleansing is extremely important … read more

A Rare Case of Invasive Keratinizing Squamous Cell Carcinoma of the Foot

In general, there are three major types of skin cancer: basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and melanoma. Basal cell carcinoma is the most common primary skin cancer amongst these, and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) is the second most common skin cancer. Sun-exposed areas are the most common site and mainly affect Caucasians. cSCC involving the lower leg and anogenital region have been more commonly associated with dark skin. It is of utmost importance to regularly monitor chronic wounds. The conversion from an ulcer to malignancy is usually a slow process and the exact pathogenesis is yet to be definitively known. It was Marjolin who, in 1827, first reported this process when he noted a malignant change in a chronic ulceration. cSCC is the most common secondary skin cancer noted to arise in chronic wounds, burn scars, trauma, and following radio necrosis … read more

Antibacterial Effect and Promoting of Skin Wound Healing After Infected with Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus for the Novel Polyvinyl Nanoparticles

Wounds represent a serious, and often overlooked, health problem in the global world. Importantly, if left untreated, several complications arise including infection, amputation, and long-term morbidity. The wound treatment has placed a massive financial burden on the health-care system, with serious and disturbing consequences for the affected patients. The development of new treatments that enhance the wound healing process and prevent, or limit, scarring is needed. Impaired wound healing is characterized by a loss of synchronization of the molecular interactions required for skin tissue repair.4 Six million patients a year are affected by wounds, costing the health-care system an estimated $25 billion dollars. Wound infection is the most common impediment to wound healing, leading to increase the morbidity and mortality among patients … read more

Emerging Roles of Long Non-Coding RNAs in Diabetic Foot Ulcers

Diabetes mellitus is one of the most widespread metabolic diseases in the world, and diabetic foot ulcer (DFU), as one of its chronic complications, not only causes a large amount of physiological and psychological pain to patients but also places a tremendous burden on the entire economy and society. Despite significant advances in knowledge on the mechanism and in the treatment of DFU, clinical practice is still not satisfactory, and our understanding of its cellular and molecular pathogenesis is far from complete. Fortunately, progress in studying the roles of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs), which play important regulatory roles in the expression of genes at multiple levels, suggests that we can apply them in the early diagnosis and potential targeted intervention of DFU. In this review, we briefly summarize the current knowledge regarding the functional roles and potential mechanisms of reported lncRNAs in regulating DFU … read more

Wound Healing Activity of Opuntia ficus-indica Fixed Oil Formulated in a Self-Nanoemulsifying Formulation

Delayed wound healing represents a common health hazard. Traditional herbal products have been often utilized to promote wound contraction. The current study aimed at assessing the wound healing activity of Opuntia ficus-indica seed oil (OFI) and its self-nanoemulsifying drug delivery system (OFI-SNEDDS) formula in a rat model of full-thickness skin excision.
Methods: Based on droplet size, an optimized OFI-SNEDDS formula was prepared and used for subsequent evaluation. Wound healing activity of OFI and OFI-SNEDDS was studied in vivo.
Results: The optimized OFI-SNEDDS formula droplet size was 50.02 nm. The formula exhibited superior healing activities as compared to regular OFI seed oil-treated rats at day 14 of wounding. This effect was further confirmed by histopathological examinations of H&E and Masson’s Trichrome-stained skin sections. Moreover, OFI-SNEDDS showed the highest antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities as compared to OFI seed oil-treated animals. Both OFI and OFI-SNEDDS significantly enhanced hydroxyproline skin content and upregulated Col1A1 mRNA expression … read more

Hydrosurgical Debridement Use Associated With Decreased Surgical Site-Related Readmissions: A Retrospective Analysis

Debridement is the cornerstone of wound care management. It allows for the removal of fibrinous and necrotic debris from the wound bed as well as the reduction of bacterial bioburden, thus allowing for proper granulation and wound healing. Hydrosurgical debridement uses a controlled, high-pressure fluid jet to cut and remove necrotic debris, contaminants, and bacteria, thereby facilitating a potentially more aggressive debridement. Objective. The efficacy of this system was compared with that of other methods of debridement in reducing … read more

FDA clears Koya Medical’s Dayspring compression system for lower extremities

Koya Medical announced today that it has received US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 510(k) clearance for its active compression therapy system Dayspring for the treatment of lymphoedema and venous diseases that impact lymphatic flow in the lower extremities. The company also announced the appointments of three veteran executives to its leadership team to support commercialisation … read more

DECREASING AMPUTATION, WORLDWIDE…BUT GREATER PREVALENCE AND MORTALITY FROM DIABETIC FOOT ULCERS (DFU)?

Here is a mashup of two manuscripts recently posted to the blog. While amputation appears to be reducing in OECD states, the risk for mortality secondary to DFU is high and may be getting higher … read more

Vital Role of Wound Care Imaging Technology in HealthTech

Wound care technology is digital, which corresponds to the digital distribution of medical records. Wound treatment documentation can now be uploaded to EHRs for unified treatment across all providers involved in a patient’s recovery process … Wound care is vital to the overall healthcare industry, clinicians, and patients. It is crucial to diagnose a wound with pinpoint accuracy and document healing, infection, and other important wound care parameters. Wound care imaging technology has been developed by innovators using technology and clinical knowledge … read more

First Patient Enrolled in Restrata® Randomized Controlled Trial

Acera Surgical, Inc. (Acera), a leading bioscience company developing and commercializing a portfolio of fully synthetic materials for regenerative medical applications, today announced its first patient enrollment in a clinical study evaluating Restrata, Acera’s leading wound care product, for the treatment of non-healing diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs). The study will generate level 1 clinical evidence to support coverage and reimbursement from US health insurers for Restrata’s use in outpatient wound clinics and physician office settings … Non-healing foot ulcers are among the most debilitating outcomes affecting people with diabetes in the United States. Roughly 1 out of 3 people with diabetes will develop a foot ulcer over the course of their lifetime1. More than 50% of diabetic foot ulcers become infected, and roughly 20% of diabetic foot infections result in amputation. That means that almost every 20 seconds, a lower limb is amputated due to complications associated with diabetes2. In the United States, an estimated $237 billion is spent annually on direct costs for diabetes, and as much as one third of that will be spent to treat lower extremity complications3 … read more

2,000,000 TWO2 Treatments Milestone Reached as TWO2 Study Is Highlighted in Systemic Review of Topical Oxygen Therapies

Beating Biofilm Is Key to Fighting Surgical Infections

Health care is at a perilous crossroads. “[D]eaths from drug-resistant infections are set to skyrocket to over 10 million per year worldwide and could cost the global economy as much as $100 trillion by 2050,” a STATISTICA article reports. The same concerning fact is stressed by United States public health officials, who agree that “antimicrobial resistant pathogens (AMR) threaten everyone”.Both reports suggest a grim future of consequences from bacterial resistance, with U.S. officials believing AMR is occurring at a rate of more than 2.8 million antibiotic resistant infections in the U.S. each year, ending in a heavy economic price and over 35,000 deaths annually. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) believes “no one can completely avoid the risk of resistant infections, with some people at greater risk than others.” Eye-opening research suggests at least 80% of these infections are biofilm related … read more

Wound-specific Bacteria May Be Targets for DEB Treatment

A distinct set of bacteria colonizes the skin in and around wounds in people with dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (DEB), according to a new study … The finding suggests that these patients may benefit from therapies that specifically target those bacteria and that encourage the growth of non wound-associated bacteria instead … The study, “Evidence for cutaneous dysbiosis in dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa,” was published in the journal Clinical and Experimental Dermatology … read more

Breaking the Barrier: An Innovative Approach to Mature Biofilm

Addressing skin and wound bioburden is of utmost importance to wound care clinicians. The tendency of microorganisms to develop biofilms within a wound has been well documented in the literature. A recent meta-analysis underscored the presence of biofilm in 78.2% of chronic wounds. Biofilms may lead to chronic infection and impact wound healing by perpetuation of the inflammatory phase. Contrasting with free-floating, acutely infectious planktonic microorganisms, a biofilm is an aggregated colony of bacteria, usually of multiple species, that produces a protective EPS and establishes its own microenvironment that is conducive to survival. The biofilm and its surrounding EPS mature over time … read more