Topical Products for the Protection of Periwound Skin: A Scoping Review

The periwound skin influences the evolution of the wound. Among the mechanisms that affect it are the wound's own exudate and the use of therapeutic support devices.

The objective of this scoping review is to map out topical products that have been implemented and evaluated for either the protection or treatment of injuries caused by exudate or the use of adhesives or therapeutic dressings on the periwound skin of acute or chronic wounds.

The methodology for scoping reviews proposed by the Joanna Briggs Institute was adopted, and a 3-step search strategy was carried out. The first search was limited to MEDLINE and CINAHL. Subsequently, a search was conducted with the identified key words and the terms of the index for the selected databases. Finally, additional studies were sought in the references of all identified publications. Two reviewers conducted the searches independently. Literature in the English, Spanish, and Portuguese languages was included.

A total of 1229 studies were identified, 12 of which met the inclusion criteria defined for this review. From the included studies, 12 products were identified for wounds of different etiologies, with the most frequent being the alcohol-free barrier film and zinc oxide.

To date, the level of evidence is low. It is necessary to develop more robust research that improves the quality of the literature available for treating people with wounds.