534 Retrospective Study Comparing Acute Healing Outcomes of Two Epidermal Skin Substitutes in Paediatric Partial-Thickness Burns

Abstract Introduction Paediatric burns are a significant global health issue; partial thickness (PT) wounds from scalds are a common injury pattern. Skin substitutes, such as collagen based (CB) dressings, are frequently used in managing these cases. We conducted a novel comparative study analysing the acute healing outcomes of a CB dressing and a novel biosynthetic cellulose (BC) dressing in paediatric PT burns. Methods All paediatric patients (age 18) with PT burns that were managed with either the CB or the BC dressings over a four-year period at our paediatric burns centre were included. Data on adherence, infection, length of stay, complete healing time, acute follow-up time, and return to theatre were extracted and a statistical analysis performed. Results Of the 89 patients included, 28 received BC dressing and 61 received CB dressing. Mean Total Body Surface Area (TBSA) was 5.9% (range 1-15) and median age was 23 months (range 8-169). BC dressing had a higher adherence rate (85.7% vs 78.7%, P=0.767) and a lower infection rate (3.6% vs 16.4%, P=0.164) than CB dressing. These trends were preserved when superficial PT only and superficial and deep PT sub-groups were analysed. Healing and infection rates were unaffected by post-operative antibiotics in both groups (P=1 and P=0.803, respectively). Return to theatre for further surgery was required in 10.7% of the patients for BC and in 6.6% for CB dressing (P=0.507). Median time to complete healing was longer in BC (19.5 vs 16 days, P=0.279). BC dressing median hospitalisation length was 1 day compared to 2 days for CB dressing (P=0.706). Conclusions The findings demonstrate that acute healing outcomes with the BC dressing in paediatric PT burns are comparable to those with the CB dressing, establishing the BC dressing as a viable alternative given its advantages in cost and avoiding porcine components. However, further prospective studies are warranted to compare acute and long-term outcomes with these products. Applicability of Research to Practice The study will directly inform clinical decision making on the use of frequently applied epidermal skin substitutes when managing paediatric partial thickness burns.