Usage of Extracellular Matrix Dressing* with Negative Pressure Wound Therapy Hasten the Healing Rate in Stage IV Pressure Ulcers

Chronic wounds present a significant burden to both patients and society. Not only can they be physically debilitating and painful, they are responsible for the addition of over $25 billion annually in health care costs in the US. Wound healing occurs in four main stages, and chronic wounds arise when there is a disruption in one of the healing stages for more than three months. Extracellular matrix dressings have been demonstrated to aid in wound healing by providing the optimal environment to facilitate the healing process. Our study examines the healing rate of chronic wounds in patients using combination of an extracellular wound matrix* underneath negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT, Wound VAC) vs using negative pressure therapy alone. A total of 16 patients completed this study with 8 study subjects and 8 control subjects. It was found that after 12 weeks’ study period, the average control subject healing rate was 45.79% as compared to 89.98% healing rate in the study group (p<0.01). We found that the difference in healing rate between control and study was optimal by 12 weeks. These studies suggest that the extracellular wound matrix may be a promising adjunctive treatment option for chronic wounds.