Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 14, 2026
Murine Full-thickness Skin Transplantation
Published on: January 2, 2017
Three donor site dressings in pediatric split-thickness skin grafts: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial
Craig A McBride1,2,3, Roy M Kimble4,5,6, Kellie Stockton7
1Pegg Leditschke Paediatric Burns Centre, Department of Paediatric Surgery, Lady Cilento Children's Hospital, 501 Stanley Street, South Brisbane, QLD, 4101, Australia. cmcbride@paedsurgery.com.
Insights
This study compares three donor site wound dressings for pediatric burn patients undergoing skin grafting. The goal is to identify the optimal dressing for healing and patient comfort, informing future clinical practice.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Burn Care
- Wound Healing Research
- Dermatological Surgery
Background:
- Split-thickness skin grafting is crucial for pediatric burn management.
- The optimal donor site wound (DSW) dressing remains debated.
- Calcium alginates are widely used but their superiority is unproven.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare the efficacy of three DSW dressings in pediatric patients.
- To determine the best-performing dressing for DSW healing and pain management.
- To provide data for optimizing pediatric burn wound care.
Main Methods:
- A randomized, prospective, three-arm trial comparing Algisite™ M (calcium alginate), Cuticerin™, and Sorbact® dressings.
- Primary outcomes include days to complete DSW healing and pain levels.
- Secondary outcomes assess itch, scar appearance, ease of use, and cost.
Main Results:
- Data on DSW healing time, pain, itch, scar appearance, and dressing utility will be collected.
- Donor site thickness will be measured to ensure consistent wound depth.
- Analysis will be intention-to-treat to reflect real-world application.
Conclusions:
- This trial will yield comprehensive data on DSW dressings for pediatric split-thickness skin grafting.
- The findings will guide the selection of the preferred DSW dressing at the Pegg Leditschke Paediatric Burns Centre.
- Results will offer rigorous comparisons for future DSW dressing research.
Background:
For children requiring split-thickness skin grafting for burn injury, the optimum donor site dressing is an ongoing subject of debate. The most common dressings in use, both regionally and worldwide, are calcium alginates. We will compare an alginate with two other dressings, all of which are in current use in the Pegg Leditschke Paediatric Burns Centre (PLPBC), to determine which dressing performs the best.
Methods/Design:
This is a randomised, prospective single center parallel three-arm trial comparing three donor site wound (DSW) dressings: Algisite™ M, a calcium alginate dressing; Cuticerin™, a smooth acetate gauze impregnated with water-repellent ointment (petrolatum, paraffin and Eucerite®) and Sorbact®, a gauze mesh coated with a dialkylcarbamoyl chloride (DACC) and amorphous hydrogel. Primary outcomes are days to complete DSW healing, and pain. Previously validated measures will be used for all outcomes. Secondary outcomes are: itch; scar appearance at three, six and 12 months; ease of dressing application and removal and dressing costs and utility. Results will be analysed on an intention-to-treat basis. Donor site thickness will be measured with a small biopsy from the center of the graft, to document the depth of the DSW across the groups.
Discussion:
This study will provide comprehensive short- and long-term data on DSW dressings in pediatric split-thickness skin grafting. The best-performing dressing will become the preferred dressing for the PLPBC. We will provide rigorous data against which other dressings can be compared in future, recognising that alginates are the most common DSW dressing currently in use. Our study design replicates a real-world scenario in order to identify clinically significant differences between the three dressings.
Trial Registration:
This trial was prospectively registered on 8 April 2014 with the Australia and New Zealand Clinical Trials Register (identifier: ACTRN12614000380695 ).
