Use of Suprathel® for partial thickness burns in children

We evaluated the use of Suprathel®, a synthetic skin substitute, for partial thickness burns in children. Thirty-three children (20 females, 13 males; mean age 29 months, range 5 months to 11 years) with burns were treated with Suprathel®. The burns were superficial partial thickness (n = 24) or mid-dermal (n = 19); the median %TBSA was 4% (range 1–13%).Suprathel® was applied after debridement, followed by Vaseline gauze, dry gauze and crepe bandage. The outer dressings were changed every 5–10 days unless clinical problems dictated otherwise.Median healing time was 16 days (range 9–38 days). Ten patients took longer than 21 days to heal, of whom four developed hypertrophic scarring, which was strongly associated with wound infection (p < 0.05). Healing time of superficial partial thickness and mid-dermal burns was not significantly different (p = 0.494).Suprathel® is an effective skin substitute for the treatment of partial thickness burns in children. The majority of burns in children are mixed depth, and Suprathel® has the advantage that it may also be used to treat mid-dermal burns. It behaves like a biological dressing but is not animal derived, so is acceptable to all religious and ethnic groups. Further studies to evaluate the efficacy and cost effectiveness of Suprathel® compared to other dressings in children are warranted.