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What is Negative Pressure Wound Terapy?
NPWT promotes wound healing by applying a vacuum through a special sealed dressing.
Te continued vacuum draws out fuid from the wound and increases blood fow to the area
Negative-pressure wound therapy (NPWT) is a
therapeutic technique using a vacuum dressing to
promote healing in acute or chronic wounds and
enhance healing of first and second degree burns.
GENERAL TECHNIQUE FOR NPWT
General technique for NPWT is as follows: a dressing
or fller material is ftted to the contours of a wound
(which is covered with a non-adherent dressing
flm) and the overlying foam is then sealed with a
transparent flm. A drainage tube is connected to the
dressing through an opening of the transparent flm.
A vacuum tube is connected through an opening in
the flm drape to a canister on the side of a vacuum
pump or vacuum source, turning an open wound into
a controlled, closed wound while removing excess
fuid from the wound bed to enhance circulation and
remove wound fuids. Tis creates a moist healing
environment and reduces edema. Te technique is
usually used with chronic wounds or wounds that are
expected to present difculties while healing (such as
those associated with diabetes).
Tree types of fller material are used over the wound
surface: open-cell foam, gauze and transparent flm, or
honeycombed textiles with a dimpled wound contact
surface.
Foam dressings are used to fll open cavity wounds and
can be cut to size to ft wounds. Te foam dressing
is applied, flling the wound and then a flm drape
is applied over the top to create a seal around the
dressing.
Open weave cotton gauze can be covered with a
transparent flm, and a fat drain is sandwiched in
gauze and placed onto the wound. Te flm drape
covers the wound and create a complete seal, and then
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The therapy involves the controlled application
of sub-atmospheric pressure to the local wound
environment, using a sealed wound dressing
connected to a vacuum pump.
the drain is
connected to
the pump via
the tubing.
Layers of
non-woven
polyester,
joined by
a silicone
elastomer,
has a non-
adherent wound contact surface made up of numerous
small semi-rigid dome structures, though this solution
has not completed a clinical trial as of December 2012.
With all three techniques, once the dressing is sealed
the vacuum pump can be set to deliver continuous
or intermittent pressures, with levels of pressure
depending on the device used, varying between −125
and −75 mmHg depending on the material used and
patient tolerance. Pressure can be applied constantly or
intermittently.
Te dressing type used depends on the type of wound,
clinical objectives and patient. For pain sensitive
patients with shallow or irregular wounds, wounds
with undermining or explored tracts or tunnels,
gauze may be used, while foam may be cut easily to
ft a patient’s wound that has a regular contour and
perform better when aggressive granulation formation
and wound contraction is the desired goal. (1)
info@ame-medical.com