Treatment of recalcitrant wounds of diverse etiology with a new hydroactive gel.

Our knowledge about wound care has progressed considerably in recent years. Nonetheless there is a continuing need for new topical hydroactive gels in this field. Flamigel® (Flen Pharma NV, Kontich, Belgium) has recently been used on a limited number of burn patients. The hydroactive colloid gel maintains the wound in an ideal moist environment. The polymer in the tube is present in two physical forms-active and inactive. In a dry wound, the active polymer will release part of its moisture to hydrate the wound and to create and maintain a moist wound environment ("hydrogel" effect). The inactive polymer remains inactive. In an exuding wound, the inactive polymer is activated by the wound exudate and starts absorbing wound exudate ("hydrocolloid" effect). The absorption ceases when the entire polymer is activated and saturated with exudate. The wound itself decides whether the hydroactive gel absorbs or hydrates; hydration in case of a dry wound, absorption in case of an exuding wound. As a result, the wound is kept in a moist environment, which optimizes wound-healing speed and reduces the likelihood of scarring. This study investigated the wound-healing capacities of the hydroactive gel in wounds that have failed to respond to other treatments. .