This report discusses the effectiveness of
conservative treatment of
burns using applications of
prostaglandin E1 (
PGE1) containing
ointment (
PGE1 ointment) to the
wound site. Fourteen patients with superficial dermal
burns (SDB), deep dermal
burns (
DDB) and full-thickness dermal
burns (DB), who were treated with repeated applications of this
ointment, showed rapid epithelialization of the affected tissue. Hypertrophic
scarring after epithelialization was less than that expected after other
therapies. The degree of
scarring was graded as 'none', 'mild', 'moderate' or 'severe'. The results of this
therapy revealed no
scarring in two sites (8.7 per cent), mild
scarring in 16 sites (69.6 per cent), moderate
scarring in one site (4.3 per cent) and severe
scarring in four sites (17.4 per cent) out of 23 sites distributed among the patients. The application of
PGE1 ointment in combination with
skin grafting surgery was found to improve functional and aesthetic results in the patients with
DDB and DB, by minimizing the area of the donor site; it was especially useful for children with extensive
burns because of the shortage of available tissue as donor site material for
skin grafting.