[Vacuum sealing as treatment of soft tissue damage in open fractures]

In 1992, 15 of 152 patients with open fractures were treated with vacuum sealing. Drainage tubes are inserted into polyvinyl foam, which is used to fill in the wound or tissue defect. Polyvinyl foam and adjacent skin are covered with a transparent polyurethane dressing which is impermeable to bacteria. The connection of the drainage tubes to a suction device, such as vacuum bottles, produces negative pressure in the polyvinyl foam, which means a high-contact zone of the foam-wound interface. This results in efficient cleaning and conditioning of the wound, with marked proliferation of granulation tissue. Bone infection did not occur in any of our 15 patients; 1 patient sustained a soft tissue infection due to an insufficient sealing technique. When the correct technique was applied the infection cleared up.