Photo Credit: Liudmyla Supynska
Recent advances in burn care, including great progress in the field of biomaterials and tissue engineering, have reduced the number of burn-related deaths.
Recent advances in burn care have helped reduce the number of burn-related deaths, according to a review article in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences.
“Most progress has been made in the field of biomaterials and tissue engineering, but an ideal biomaterial that mimics the structure of the skin and is able to restore skin function, pigmentation, skin appendages, vessels, and nerves, has not yet been developed,” wrote the first author Elżbieta Radzikowska-Büchner, MD, of the Department of Plastic, Reconstructive and Maxillary Surgery, National Medical Institute of the Ministry of the Interior and Administration, in Warszawa, Poland, and the review coauthors.
Rapid wound cleansing is key for effective treatment and includes conservative approaches with hydrogels, hydrocolloids, or enzymatic cleansing techniques as well as surgical methods to remove necrotic tissue. Appropriate dressing is also essential, with dressing choices depending on the characteristics of the wound itself, the article explains. Dressing options are varied and include those made of natural polymers, synthetic polymers, and nanomaterials.
Early burn excision, the standard since the 1970s, increases survival, reduces rates of infection, and shortens hospitalization, according to the review. After excision of burn tissue, skin grafting helps with wound closure. Numerous skin substitutes and technologies are commercially available to assist with wound coverage.
“One of the current research trends is the attempt to create a skin substitute as a result of the rapid cultivation of stem cells on special polymeric substrates, to cover wounds, but also as bioactive dressings that actively support the functionality of the wound and accelerate the healing process,” the authors reported.
Appropriate nutrition that considers adequate provision of energy and protein, as well as essential macro- and micronutrients, is another integral component of care. Immediately after a burn injury, patients are typically in a hypometabolism state, which transitions to a phase of hypermetabolism.
“Depending on the stage of the burn, the patient’s condition, and the cause of the burn, we need to choose the most appropriate treatment. Personalization and multidisciplinary collaboration are key to the successful management of patients with burns,” the review advised.
