[Evaluation of the clinical effectiveness of the dressing PermaFoam for the treatment of chronic ulcers].

Introduction: The presence on the market of new dressings to cure injuries makes it necessary for professionals to know their peculiarities for use in order to optimize their applications. The main objective of this study is to know the clinical behavior of a polymer sponge dressing having a porous grade called PermaFoam in the treatment of chronic ulcers caused by various etiologies.
Material and Methods: The authors carried out an open observational, prospective and multi-centric study during the first semester in 2004 on patients who suffered from chronic lesions sent by the Primary Health Care Centers and Social-Sanitary Centers. The injuries under study showed states II, III or IV with moderate to high oozing and whose follow-up took place during a maximum of 8 weeks of treatment.
Results: 53 patients, 31 women and 22 men, formed part of this study; their average age was 76.1 (+/- 13.18). 56 lesions were treated; 26 bedsores, 11 venous sores, 10 mixed lesions and 9 other types, they had an average presence on the patient of 270 (+/- 684) days, the medium was 85 days and the mode 365 days. Complete cicatrisation occurred in 21 lesions (37.5%), the absolute average surface reduction was 13.42 cm2 squared (IC 95%: 7.39-19.45) and the relative mean reduction was 61.31% (IC 95%: 50.66-71.97)
Conclusions: The use of the PermaFoam dressing permitted complete cicatrisation of an improvement in the final surface area in all lesions treated regardless of their etiology state, or length of presence. The use of this dressing has controlled the levels of oozing, diminished the number of changes of the dressing, respected the skin surrounding the lesion, and favored a reduction in the number of alterations in the surrounding area.