[Application of therapy in negative pressure complex wounds in pediatrics]

Abstract

Negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) has been widely used in the adult patient, contrary to what happens in children, with just a few long series papers. NPWT avoids long and expensive hospital admissions, reducing the hospital costs; it also decreases the family dynamics and allows for an early return to everyday activities. In this article, we present three clinical cases consisting of a toddler, a child and a teenager with complex wounds treated with NPWT in the pediatric surgery department of the Virgen de las Nieves University Hospital in Granada. The results were excellent, with a good adherence to treatment in all cases, achieving a complete closure in two cases; the third case needed a deferred surgical closure after surgical site preparation, and showed a decrease of the wound size after the NPWT. Moreover, successful pain management was achieved during the wound cleansing, which was done under an ambulatory regime. No general anesthesia was needed. From our experience, we propose the NPWT as an alternative therapy to the classic surgical approach for this type of complex lesions in children, which offers the same advantages and results than in adults.

Keywords: Complex wounds; Cuidados de herida; Heridas complejas; Negative-pressure wound therapy; Pediatrics; Pediatría; Terapia de presión negativa; Wound care.