Battling the Issues of Skin and Wound Pathogens With or Without Excess Drainage Using a Unique Foam to Provide an All in One Dressing Choice

Historically, the topical antimicrobial agent silver has been used for hundreds of years in wound care. In recent years, a wide range of wound dressings that contain silver have been developed. They have become available across all healthcare settings for the prevention and management of infection in the wound. With the issue of increasing resistance to antibiotics and the fall in the number of antibiotics being developed, silver will continue to play a vital role in controlling bioburden in wounds. Objective: Our objective was to have an All-in-One composite silver foam dressing available for use on a variety of acute and chronically infected wounds and also for use on wounds that are potentially at risk for infection with or without excess drainage. After  having positive outcomes in our 4 hospital system with our current All-in-One sodium-carboxymethylcellulose foam composite dressings with different  shapes and sizes, we decided to trial the same composite silver dressing to possibly add it to our product selection formulary. A 5 patient case study was initiated. Patient selection included a diabetic foot ulcer, pressure ulcer with surrounding fungal rash, lower extremity ulcer with surrounding cellulitis, donor site on the thigh, and severe IAD with partial thickness skin loss. Outcomes: The dressing demonstrated the ability to heal fungal rashes, absorb excess exudate without causing maceration of peri-wound skin, and improve wound appearance. Nursing approval was overwhelming with the staff already being familiar with the non-silver version of the foam composite product having ease of use and ability to manage excess drainage. Patient satisfaction was very positive with decreased pain and comfort with ease of application and removal of the dressing. Conclusion: Our facility plans to move forward with the process of adding this dressing to our product selection formulary.