Digital Planimetry for Assessing Wound Closure Kinetics in a Mouse Model

Area of Science:

• Wound healing research
• Biomedical engineering
• Pre-clinical research methodology

Background:

• Chronic wounds pose a significant global health challenge.
• Current wound assessment methods often lack standardization and precision.
• There is a need for reliable quantitative methods to track wound healing kinetics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To standardize an indirect wound measurement technique using digital planimetry.
• To incorporate digital scaling and segmentation for precise wound assessment.
• To establish a reliable and reproducible method for evaluating wound closure in pre-clinical settings.

Main Methods:

• Designed and constructed a custom photodocumentation booth for controlled imaging.
• Utilized computer-assisted digital planimetry with ImageJ software for measurements.
• Created standardized circular traumatic wounds in CD1 mice for evaluation over 14 days.

Main Results:

• The developed method minimized variability in wound area, perimeter, and edge distance measurements.
• Wound closure kinetics were accurately tracked, showing initial slight expansion followed by gradual closure by day 14.
• The photodocumentation booth ensured consistent lighting, focal distance, and positioning.

Conclusions:

• The combination of a custom photodocumentation booth and digital planimetry offers a reliable and reproducible approach.
• This standardized indirect measurement method is suitable for evaluating wound healing in pre-clinical models.
• The technique enhances the accuracy and consistency of wound assessment in research settings.