A retrospective- multicenter study: Evaluation of the same brand (Confort) negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) with silver coated and standard foam in diabetic foot ulcers

Abstract

Diabetic foot ulcers are hard to treat ulcers that are common in population. This situation causes amputations and extremity loss. Among therapeutic options negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) seems a good option to treat specially non osteomyelitic and non ischemic wounds. This method can be widely used in deep, large and infected wounds. The antibacterial effect of silver on wounds has been used for centuries. Silver wound closure sets, which are also used in NPWT systems, have gained importance in recent years. In this study, the effect of Confort brand NPWT with and without silver on wound healing evaluated retrospectively. This is a multi center study involving five different institution. As a success criterion, a reduction of >50% in the initial dimensions of the wound (width/length/depth) after 7 applications is accepted. When the silver coated and standard foam Confort NPWT groups were compared, the reduction of 50% or more in the wound volume was relatively shorter in the silver group; while it was 3.2 +/- 1.2 weeks in the silver group, it was 5.14 +/- 2.3 weeks in the silver-free group (p=0.08).