The Journal of burn care & rehabilitation
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J Burn Care Rehabil · Jan 1998
Comparative StudyCutaneous nerve distribution in adult rat hairy skin after thermal injury--an immunohistochemical study.
Regrowth of cutaneous nerves after thermal injury was examined in rat hairy skin with use of protein gene product 9.5, which has been shown to label nerves in skin preparations. Tissue biopsies were obtained from injured and control skin at postburn days 1, 7, 14, 28, and 120, fixed in 4% paraformaldehyde, cryoprotected, sectioned, and immunostained with rhodamine conjugated goat anti-rabbit immunoglobulin G. Immunoreactivity for protein gene product 9.5 was intense and illustrated the process of nerve regrowth in rat skin after thermal injury. ⋯ Results suggest that rat hairy skin has a capacity for nerve regrowth after thermal injury. Nerves were noted to regenerate from beneath the scar. Burn wounds in rats demonstrated vigorous cutaneous nerve regeneration.
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J Burn Care Rehabil · Jan 1998
Case ReportsTrilaminar skin coverage combined with cultured epithelial autografts--a new technique for treating the elderly patient with burn injuries.
Additional morbidity may be associated with standard split-thickness skin graft donor sites in elderly (65 years or older) patients with burn injuries. In an attempt to minimize the area of the donor sites and maximize autografts, we describe a new technique that uses trilaminar harvesting of skin grafts with dermolipectomy closure, and permanent coverage of the autograft layers achieved with cultured epithelial autografts in an elderly burn victim. ⋯ All dermolipectomy sites healed without infection. Our procedure proved to be a useful technique in the permanent closure of full- and partial-thickness burns in an elderly patient admitted to the burn unit.