Clinical effects of continuous microwave for postoperative septic wound treatment: a double-blind controlled trial

Continuous microwave (CM) has already been shown to be effective in treating various pathologic states. The aim of this trial was to study the curative effect of this new physical method on the course of postoperative suppurative and inflammatory processes in patients who underwent abdominal surgery.

In this study, 141 patients with postoperative purulent wounds (predominantly caused by pyogenic Staphylococcus aureus) were randomized into two groups: 71 patients received local CM therapy (group A), and the other 70 patients received a placebo treatment using a similar but ineffective device (group B, controls). In this double-blind study, criteria for wound healing in both patient groups were evaluated.

Results demonstrated that wound clearance was significantly accelerated in group A (treated with CM) compared with group B (controls): 5.6 +/- 0.6 versus 10.2 +/- 0.5 days (mean +/- standard deviation), respectively. Similarly, initial epithelization was significantly forced in group A compared with group B: 7.0 +/- 0.4 versus 12.8 +/- 0.6 days, respectively; and granulation appeared after 4.9 +/- 0.2 versus 8.7 +/- 0.4 days of postoperative treatment, respectively. Daily decrease of wound surface area was significantly higher in group A than in group B (7.1% versus 3.2%). On the fifth postoperative day of treatment, the number of microorganisms was considerably lower (10(5) per gram of tissue) in patients treated with CM than in controls.

The results of this controlled clinical trial suggest that low-intensity CM is an effective postoperative treatment of purulent wounds after abdominal surgery. Further investigations may elucidate the underlying mechanisms in detail and optimize the curative effects in surgical practice.