Active wound dressing with artificial capillaries for temporary wound irrigation and skin cell supply.

Medical treatment of burns and chronic wounds remains a challenge. We discussed a therapy concept that combines skin cell spray transplantation with a novel wound dressing based on artificial hollow fiber membrane capillaries. In skin cell-based therapy development, autologous skin progenitor cells are isolated from a healthy skin area and sprayed onto the wound. A medical device was introduced that uses perfused capillaries, known from clinical plasma separation, as a temporarily applied extracorporeal wound capillary bed. The functions of the dressing are comparable with those of dialysis; the capillaries, however, are applied externally onto the wound. Perfusion with a clinical peripheral nutrition and buffer solution can provide wound irrigation, wound debris removal, cell nutrition, pH regulation, and electrolyte balance while potentially serving to address delivery of regenerative factors and antibiosis. An innovative active skin wound dressing that provides cell support and stimulates regeneration by wound irrigation is discussed.