The influence of percutaneous collagen induction with medical needling on patients with burn scars - prospective, controlled study

Status:

completed 08/2019

Aims:

The aim of the Study was to verify if Medical Needling can trigger percutaneous collagen induction in burn scars and thus can induce stable improvements of scar quality and of quality of life.

Activities/Methods:

Study design: prospective controlled intervention study

Study population: 5 patients (3 male, 2 female, Ø age: 38.8 ± 10.9 years, Ø BMI: 32.1 ± 4.9 kg), a total of 15 different skin locations

Fully healed burn scars (a minimum of 2 years after the accident). No previous Medical Needling was allowed.

The first data collection took place one month before Needling (t0). Followed by a 1 month period of vitamin-oil application onto the scar tissue. This process was conducted as a preparation for the Needling. The second data collection was arranged directly before operation (t1), the third was conducted one month after operation (t2) and the fourth and last one was conducted after six month (t3).

Primary aim of the study was the quantification of subjective scar improvement at t3 measured by the POSAS. Objective Cutometer measurements, subjective assessment of scar quality by VSS and quality of life measured by BSHS B and SF36 were secondary aims of the study.

Results:

Our measurements indicate a not significant short-term impact on scar properties at t2. This may be due to reconfiguration processes within the healing tissue after the operation. However, subjective and objective results do not show any significant differences between subjective and objective measured skin properties. There was also no difference regarding the quality of life between t0 and t3.

A cumulative effect, which may be provoked by repeated Needling, was not addressed in this study. Repeated Needling may cause discernible skin alterations that can be registered subjectively and objectively. Little amount of data in our study make our calculations for significance not dependable. Due to this reasons we cannot conclude from our data that Medical Needling is useless for the improvement of burn scars and quality of life.

Last Update: