We prospectively studied 174 patients on whom 226 unsutured parallel incisional (shave) and 3-mm punch skin biopsies were performed. Two
wound-care programs,
occlusive dressing therapy and conventional
therapy, were compared. The biopsy sites were evaluated after 1 or 2 weeks for healing,
pain, and
infection. We found that healing was unrelated to the indication for biopsy or the patients' age, gender, or race.
Occlusive dressing therapy-treated shave biopsy sites were 3.83 times more likely to be healed than those treated with conventional
therapy. Regardless of the treatment method, a facial shave biopsy site was 3.6 times more likely to be healed than a biopsy site in other locations. No punch biopsy site had healed after 1 week. At 2 weeks, only 7% and 36% of conventional
therapy- and
occlusive dressing therapy-treated punch biopsy sites, respectively, had healed.
Pain at the biopsy site was six times more common in both shave and punch biopsy sites treated with conventional
therapy. The absence of
pain with
occlusive dressing therapy was significant for both types of biopsy. One punch biopsy site treated with conventional
therapy became infected, and one treated with
occlusive dressing therapy was suspected of being infected. Forty patients, who had biopsy sites treated with both
therapies, preferred
occlusive dressing therapy over conventional
therapy by a ratio of 3:1 because of ease of
wound care and lack of
pain. We conclude that
occlusive dressing therapy may be the
wound management of choice for shave biopsy sites. Since punch biopsy sites do not heal readily, it may be more appropriate to
suture them, at least until
therapies are developed that more effectively speed their healing.