Efficacy of human amniotic membrane and collagen in maxillofacial soft tissue defects – A comparative clinical study

ObjectiveManagement of traumatic facial soft tissue injury poses a major challenge for surgeons due to aesthetic concerns. Human amniotic membrane (AM) and collagen membrane (CM), biologic materials, have attained importance in various clinical fields, especially in wound healing. Though both materials have their own unique properties, there is a need to compare and evaluate the efficacy of AM and CM as a wound dressing material for post-traumatic soft tissue injuries of the maxillofacial region.MethodsA study was conducted in Department of Oral And Maxillofacial Surgery, at our institution which encompassed all the patients (total of 20 patients) with facial soft tissue injuries (abrasions), due to road traffic accidents from January 2014 to March 2014. They were randomly divided into two groups, with 10 patients treated with AM and 10 patients treated with CM. The groups were compared according to the wound compliance, time taken for granulation tissue formation and scarring.ResultsIt was observed that the pain score was much higher in Collagen group than in Amnion group and complete adherence of the membrane to the wound was detected in both the groups. A statistically significant result in favour of AM was found with regard to average time taken for granulation tissue formation (P = 0.036) and the resultant scarring. Incidence of wound infection was reported in two cases in Collagen group.ConclusionWhen compared to Collagen, AM had good adhesive, antibacterial, anti-immunogenic and anti-scarring property. Its low cost of procurement and storage makes it an ideal wound dressing material.