Annals of Burns and Fire Disasters - vol. IX - n. 3
- September 1996
A
NEW TECHNIQUE FOR WOUND DEBRIDEMENT
Midon Miguez 1, Valero
Gasalla J., Pousa Real F, Martelo Villar F.J.
Servicio de Cirugia Plastica, Hospital Juan
Canalejo, La Coruha, Spain
SUMMARY. A new
technique is presented for wound debridement, based on the use of metallic swabs. The
technique's simplicity and rapidity and the limited damage caused to healthy tissue
surrounding the wound make it particularly useful in the debridement of partialthickness
wounds.
Introduction
Tangential excision, described by Janzekovic,' is the most commonly used method for
the debridement of burns and lesions with hypertrophic granulated tissue.
However, the dermatome can be
difficult to use in lesions with irregular edges, in small or multiple wounds, and in
those situated in concavities, with the risk of damage to surrounding healthy tissue.
We here describe a new technique that is suitable for such conditions.
Description of the
technique
Debridement with a metallic swab (Fig. 1) is simple to perform, consisting of
energetic rubbing of the wound with the swab until all necrotic tissue or granulation is
eliminated, in order to obtain a bleeding surface suitable for receiving the skin graft (Figs.
2a,b).
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Fig.
1 - The metallic swab |
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Fig.
2a - Lesions in buttock surface before swab debridement. |
Fig.
2b - Lesions in buttock surface after swab debridement. |
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Advantages and disadvantages
Among the advantages offered by this
technique, we would like to emphasize the following points:
The disadvantages which we
have found are as follows: incomplete debridement of necrotic tissue on some occasions,
although this is not an obstacle for graft acceptance. This phenomenon was demonstrated by
Jackson,' who showed that grafts are accepted in zones with incomplete debridement, owing
to to plasmatic diffusion through them the technique is not useful in full-thickness
lesions
We recommend the application of this new
technique in the debridement of partial-thickness burns or in lesions with considerable
granulation which present irregular edges, are small or multiple, or are situated in
concavities.
RESUME. Les
Auteurs décrivent une nouvelle technique pour le débridement des lésions basée sur
l'emploi de tampons métalliques. La simplicité et la rapidité de la technique, comme
aussi les dommages limités causés au tissu sain autour de la lésion, la rendent
particulièrement utile dans le débridement del lésions d'épaisseur moyenne.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
- Janzekovic Z.: "Present clinical aspects of
burns: A symposium".Derganc M. Maribor, Yugoslavia, 1968.
- Jackson D.M.: Second thoughts on the bum wound. J.
Trauma, 9:839-62, 1969.
This paper was
received on 15 February 1996.
Address correspondence to: Dr Josd Mid6n Mfguez, C/ Mendndez Pelayo 4-6, 9' C, 15.005 La
Corufla, Spain. |
G. WHITAKER
INTERNATIONAL BURNS PRIZE
PALERMO (ITALY)
under the patronage of the Authorities of the Sicilian Region for 1997
By law n' 57 of June 14th 1983 the
Sicilian Regional Assembly authorized the President of the Region to grant the
"Giuseppe Whitaker Foundation", a non-profit-making organization under the
patronage of the Accademia dei Lincei with seat in Palermo, an annual contribution for the
establishment of the "G. Whitaker International Burns Prize" aimed at
recognizing the activity of the most qualified experts from all countries in the field of
burns pathology and treatment.
The amount of the prize is fixed at
twenty million Italian lire. The prize is awarded each year by the month of June in
Palermo at the seat of the G. Whitaker Foundation.
The Adjudicating Committee is composed of the President of the Foundation, the
President of the Sicilian Region, the Representative of the Accademia dei Lincei within
the G. Whitaker Foundation, the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery of Palermo
University, three experts in the field of prevention, pathology, therapy and functional
recovery of burns, the winner of the prize awarded the previous year, and a legal expert
nominated in agreement with the President of the Sicilian Region as a guarantee of the
respect for the scientific purposes which the legislators intended when establishing the
prize.
All persons who consider themselves to be qualified to compete for the award are
invited to send their detailed curriculum no later than 3 1 st January 1997 to Michele
Masellis M.D., Secretary-Member of the Scientific Committee, G. Whitaker Foundation, Via
Dante 167, 90141 Palermo, Italy. |
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