OBJECTIVETo evaluate the clinical curative effect of applying vacuum sealing drainage (VSD) therapy in treating deep partial-thickness burn wound at the initial stage prospectively, and to provide the basis for its clinical application.

METHODSTwenty-two patients with about 10% TBSA burn of the lower limbs, and in which partial-thickness wound exceeded 1% TBSA in each limb, were admitted to our hospital within 3 hours after burn from May 2009 to March 2010. Wounds in each patient were divided into VSD treatment group (treated with VSD therapy) and control group (treated with 10 g/L silver sulfadiazine cream) based on the principles of symmetry of location, identical deepness, and similarity in size etc. The amount of water evaporation, the swelling intensity, the status of bacterial colonization, the degree of pain, the healing time, and the quality of healing of wounds in 2 groups were observed and compared. Data were processed with t test and rank-sum test.

RESULTSThe observation was completed in 21 patients. All of the wounds were treated within 4 hours post burn (PBH). The amount of water evaporation of the normal skin and burn wounds before dressing coverage in VSD treatment group was respectively close to that in control group (with t value respectively 1.310, -0.911, P values all above 0.05); the amount of water evaporation on the surface of dressing in VSD treatment group [(44.3+/-3.9) mLxh(-1)xm(-2)] was less than that in control group [(66.1+/-6.4) mLxh(-1)xm(-2), t=-11.39, P<0.01]. In VSD treatment group, the circumference of proximal thigh increased (3.48+/-0.35) and (2.51+/-0.21) cm on post burn day (PBD) 3, 7 as compared with that on PBH 5, which was respectively smaller than that [(8.02+/-0.41), (3.99+/-0.32) cm] in control group (with t value respectively 4.110, 3.569, P values all below 0.01). Positive bacteria' culture rate on PBD 10 of each group was respectively lower than that at admission (with Z value respectively -3.220, -3.870, P values all below 0.01), and there was no significant statistical difference between 2 groups at admission or on PBD 10 (with Z value respectively -0.894, 0.000, P values all above 0.05). The wound surface in VSD treatment group was weak acidic (pH value 7.12+/-0.06) on PBD 10, and it was neutral (pH value 7.41+/-0.13) in control group. The wound pain degree in control group on PBD 1, 3, 7 was respectively higher than that in VSD treatment group (with t value respectively -16.132, -21.230, -16.453, P values all below 0.01). There was no significant statistical difference between 2 groups in healing time of wounds (t=1.186, P>0.05). The healing quality of wounds in VSD treatment group (100.00%, 100.00%) 2 or 3 months after burn was better than that in control group (19.05%, 85.71%) (with Z value respectively -11.638, -3.870, P values all below 0.01).

CONCLUSIONSEarly application of VSD therapy cannot expedite the healing process of deep partial-thickness burn wounds, but it can improve the healing quality. It is one of the effective methods to deal with deep partial-thickness burn wounds, which is worthy of clinical attention and further research.