A best evidence topic in cardiac surgery was written according to a structured protocol. The question addressed was whether vacuum-assisted closure therapy (VAC) is superior to conventional therapy for treating post-sternotomy mediastinitis. Altogether >261 papers were found using the reported search, of which 9 represented the best evidence to answer the clinical question. The authors, journal...

Rigid plaster dressings and immediate postoperative prostheses (IPOP) in patients undergoing transtibial amputations have been reported to reduce pain and healing time, prevent knee flexion contractures, and expedite early ambulation compared to soft dressings. Yet, despite the reported benefits, surgical adoption of (conventional) rigid dressings and IPOP has been inconsistent. The purpose of ...

The purpose of this experiment was to carry out a preliminary comparison of growth rates, Feed Conversion efficiencies (FCR), Dressing percentages (DP) and from two batches of broilers reared under standard management practices except that to one batch only, Aloe vera (Aloe barbadense) pulp was added to the drinking water. Broiler weights via pen and pen X sex were subjected to ANOVA for the se...

Despite being a wound treatment method with a broad spectrum of indications, vacuum-assisted wound closure (VAWC) can be a painful treatment modality which may even result with patient unwillingness for the continuation of treatment. A prospective study was undertaken to determine the effect of regional pain blocks (RPB) for patients who wanted to abandon treatment due to pain after the first a...

INTRODUCTION Conventional management of partial thickness facial burn wounds includes the use of silver sulphadiazine dressings. Silver sulphadiazine forms an overlying slough that makes wound healing assessment difficult. Moist exposed burn ointment (MEBO) has been proposed as the ideal burn wound dressing both for burns of the face and other sites. Proponents of MEBO claim that it accelerates...

This study compares the costs of dressings used in the treatment of patients with a variety of wound aetiologies. The two dressings investigated were a hydrocolloid dressing and a hydrocellular dressing. Secondary objectives included a comparison of dressing durability, time to complete healing, ease of wound cleansing and dressing removal. The study was an open prospective single-centre random...

Nurses have shown a weakness both in recognising different types of exudate and in choosing an appropriate dressing (Smith and Gibson, 2011). In order to support nurses in identifying the correct dressing choice, an exudate wound decision algorithm has been developed. The algorithm suggests the type of dressing required for bleeding and infected wounds is a calcium alginate dressing with a silv...

Reconstruction of any soft tissue defect is managed as per conventional reconstructive ladder. The options range from healing by secondary intention, primary closure, skin graft and flaps. Skin graft is one of the commonest methods of reconstruction. For proper take of skin graft, the graft needs to be adherent to the wound bed for first few days. The fixation should not allow any hematoma or s...