Wound Healing Devices Brief Vignettes

Abstract

The demand for wound care therapies is increasing. New wound care products and devices are marketed at a dizzying rate. Practitioners must make informed decisions about the use of medical devices for wound healing therapy. This paper provides updated evidence and recommendations based on a review of recent publications. The published literature on the use of medical devices for wound healing continues to support the use of hyperbaric oxygen therapy, negative pressure wound therapy, and most recently electrical stimulation. To inform wound healing practitioners of the evidence for or against the use of medical devices for wound healing. This information will aid the practitioner in deciding which technology should be accepted or rejected for clinical use. To produce high quality, randomized controlled trials or acquire outcome-based registry databases to further test and improve the knowledge base as it relates to the use of medical devices in wound care.

Accelerated burn wound healing with photobiomodulation therapy involves activation of endogenous latent TGF-β1

“…The conventional mainstay of wound management involves surgical debridement, disinfection, and dressings. Newer approaches utilizing directed-energy, biophysical modalities such as microcurrents, ultrasounds, radiofrequency, and biophotonics have spurred much recent interest 93 , 94 . The use of biophotonics devices is based on specific photon-biological interactions and can assist in surgical debridement, disinfection (antimicrobial photodynamic therapy), and stimulation of host immune response and tissue healing or regeneration 95 , 96 .…”

Evaluation of an Electro-Pneumatic Device for Artificial Capillary Pulse Generation used in a Prospective Study in Animals for Surgical Neck Wound Healing

“…In the current scientific literature, the most-used therapies described to accelerate wound healing are negative pressure therapy, electrical stimulation and hyperbaric oxygen therapy 26 . No evidence of data indicates one specific therapy prevailing over any other.…”

Electrically stimulated cell migration and its contribution to wound healing

“…The demand from clinicians for wound healing is increasing, especially for chronic and non-healing wounds; this has stimulated the development of novel treatment devices. Among other available treatment modalities, including hyperbaric oxygen therapy and negative pressure wound therapy, electrical stimulation is an attractive option [ 43 ].…”

“…Medical devices are designed to conduct via traditional electrodes, arrays of batteries, or electric currents induced in tissue by pulsed electromagnetic waves [ 44 ]. There are excellent reviews on electrical stimulation technologies and electrical stimulation devices for wound healing and antibacterial purposes by Kloth and Anderson et al [ 42 , 43 ].…”