In oral surgery, tissue loss may occur in some cases, resulting in bone exposure and subsequent wound infection and possible scar formation during secondary healing. In this study, Terudermis® Artificial Dermis (AD-T), a dermal defect graft made from processed bovine dermis collagen and gelatin sponge (GS) were used as dressings on 100-mm2 wounds with exposed bone on the heads of rats. For the control group, the wound was left exposed. The wound-healing efficacy of the treatment was compared macroscopically and histologically among the three groups at 1, 2, and 4 weeks after surgery. Complete wound healing was achieved faster in the AD-T group than in the GS group, and osteoblasts appeared on the bone surface, indicating accelerated bone remodeling. Furthermore, in the AD-T group, there was an increased production of newly formed blood vessels, fibroblasts and osteoblasts positive for anti-cortactin antibodies, which are believed to contribute to wound healing. Our findings suggest that AD-T is better than GS as a wound dressing material.
Keywords: artificial dermis; atelocollagen; cortactin; dressing material; wound healing.