Assessment of wound healing following wall-mounted negative-pressure wound therapy using wound bed score

To measure the change in Wound Bed Score in wounds of acute musculoskeletal injury patients before and after applying a low-cost wall-mounted negative-pressure wound therapy device.

The study involved 50 patients aged 18 and older who had acute musculoskeletal wounds and underwent surgical debridement with subsequent requirement of wound coverage. Dressings were done using a low-cost wall-mounted negative-pressure wound therapy (NPWT) device set at a constant pressure of 125 mmHg for 48 h. Various parameters of the Wound Bed Score (WBS) were recorded before and after the application of the NPWT device, and data were used for statistical analysis.

Fifty patients fulfilling the inclusion criteria with a mean age of 35.98 ± 14.94 were included in the study. The average WBS increased from 7.42 ± 1.95 to 12.12 ± 2.18 after treatment, indicating a mean increase of 4.7 points. There was a decrease in black eschar area in 16/50 (32%) patients, 34/50 (68%) patients exhibited a decrease in peri-wound dermatitis, 9/50 (18%) exhibited a decrease in depth, 42/50 (84%) patients exhibited a decrease in edema and 12/50 (24%) patients exhibited a decrease in exudate amount. Moreover, 46/50 (92%) patients showed an increase in granulation tissue, and 24/50 (48%) patients demonstrated an increase in resurfacing epithelium post-NPWT application.

The results demonstrated a statistically significant increase in Wound bed score after 48 h of NPWT application in all patients using a much cheaper alternative to commercially available VAC®. The only parameter of Wound Bed Score, i.e., peri-wound scarring showed a non-significant change.