SHBC1591

K. FONG¹, X.H. ZHAO¹, A. YONG²

National Skin Centre¹, Gleagles Medical Centre²

Secondary intention healing (SIH) may be preferred for surgical defects under high tension, which may impair wound healing. Its use is limited primarily by the need for prolonged wound care. There is no consensus regarding use of adjunctive agents to address this. The use of silicone-based dressings have been described in the management of post-operative scars and may be a useful adjunct for SIH. This study aims to review the effect of adjunctive application of silicone gel (SG) versus mupirocin ointment (MO) on wound healing by SIH over the scalp and extremities.

This is a 5 year retrospective, single-institution, cohort study involving patients who underwent skin tumor excision over the scalp or limbs and healed by SIH. Cases (SG) and controls (MO) were identified. “Time to complete re-epithelialization” and “time to granulation” were used as outcome measures.

Of 8 cases and 16 controls, wounds with adjunctive SG required a shorter duration to complete re-epithelialization versus MO (p = 0.02).  There was no significant difference when comparing for duration to initial wound granulation (p = 0.39). Multivariate logistic regression demonstrated a positive association between adjunctive SG and time to complete re-epithelialization (p = 0.048).

Although only a conclusion of non-inferiority can be drawn due to the limited sample size, this study provides good preliminary data supporting the use of SG as a safe and cost-effective adjunct for SIH. Larger, adequately powered prospective studies are needed to confirm these findings.