Case Series/Study
Three patients (aged 47-72 years) presented with sacral wounds. Prior to NPWTi-d, these patients had NVT (range: 35-60%) occupying the wound. Wound etiology included pressure injuries (PI) (n=2) and a non-healing surgical wound (n=1). Patient 1 (53-year-old male) had a hospital-acquired PI with 50% NVT, Patient 2 (47-year-old male) had a sacral surgical wound with 35% NVT status post skin excision resultant of recurrent abscess formation, and Patient 3 (72-year-old female) had a PI with 60% NVT and exposed bone. Patient 1 was previously treated using a collagenase ointment. After 13 days of NPWTi-d, NVT in Patient 1 was reduced to 30%. In 9 days, NVT was reduced in Patient 2 to 5%. Following 4 days, NVT was reduced to 30% in Patient 3.
Discussion: In these patients with sacral wounds, hydromechanical removal of NVT using NPWTi-d with ROCF-CCC dressing demonstrated favorable clinical outcomes for wounds with ≥20% NVT in the acute care setting. This novel indication makes NPWTi-d useful in wound management when surgical debridement is either delayed or not indicated for the patient.