The effects of omega‐3 fatty acid diet enrichment on wound healing

Omega‐3 fatty acids were evaluated to determine how their anti‐inflammatory properties affect wound healing. Twelve Beagle dogs were divided into two groups of six. Group I was fed an n‐3 fatty acid enriched diet (n‐3 FAED) with an n‐6 to n‐3 fatty acid ratio of 0.3, and group II was fed a control diet (CD) with a ratio of 7.7. Open and sutured cutaneous wounds were created on the trunk of the dog, and evaluated by laser Doppler perfusion imaging, tensiometry, planimetry, histopathology, and eicosanoid content. At 5 days, the n‐3 FAED‐fed dogs had significantly less epithelialization of the open wounds (P = 0.0343) and significantly less oedema in sutured wounds (P = 0.015). There were also tendencies of less tissue perfusion (P = 0.086), lower PGE2levels (P = 0.0756) and negative wound contraction in open wounds at 5 days. The n‐3 FAED used in this study did not appear to have any outstanding long‐term negative effect on wound healing.