Chronic wounds heal faster with cold plasma

In a new clinical study, the use of plasma in medicine is proving to be interesting: treatment with cold plasma for chronic, non-healing wounds was more effective than standard therapy. The wound healing rate improved by 214 per cent with cold plasma therapy.

Chronic wounds burden millions of patients as well as healthcare systems – this is a medical and financial challenge. The treatment of wounds with standard wound therapy (SWT) is currently considered the gold standard. However, recent findings suggest that cold plasma therapy (CPT) offers a promising medical option for improving chronic wounds. With this in mind, researchers conducted the Plasma On chronic Wounds for Epidermal Regeneration, or „Power“, study funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research. In it, they compared the effectiveness of a large-scale plasma therapy for treatment with standard wound therapy.

Cold plasma treatment is a novel medical approach. It uses a physical aggregate state that is generated by partially ionising the ambient air. The plasma gas generated in this way unfolds antibacterial, antiviral and cell-activating effects through various physical mechanisms, ultimately promoting wound healing.

Plasma in medicine: how wounds heal better

The study proves that the combination of plasma treatment (CPT) with standard wound treatment (SWT) is superior to the current gold standard in terms of effectiveness alone. One of the key results is the significant improvement in the wound healing rate when using CPT therapy by 214 per cent.

The acceleration of wound healing was already noticeable after the first treatment with CPT and improved continuously until day 25. This result is therefore significant not only for outpatient care but also for clinical practice in hospitals. However, the scientists also achieved very good results in the areas of wound closure, reduction of antibiotic therapy and improvement in quality of life.

They used a sterile active wound dressing, CPT patch, which generates a homogeneous plasma field over a large treatment area (10 cm x 10 cm) and achieves its effect after a treatment lasting just two minutes. The treatment is fully automatic and effect-optimised. It is independent of wound size and depth and can also be carried out by non-medical personnel.

With plasma, fewer antibiotics and less pain

The significant results in detail:

• Faster wound healing rate:
  CPT led to a significant acceleration of the wound healing rate compared to standard wound therapy. The wound closure factor increased by 214% in the CPT group compared to the SWT group.
Fewer antibiotics: The CPT group required only 4% antibiotics compared to 23% in the SWT group.Less pain: Patients in the CPT group reported less wound pain. A reduction in passive pain to 0 (median) was also recorded.More quality of life: The researchers found a strong and clinically significant improvement in the quality of life of patients in the CPT group.

Article from "medizin & technik" from 26/09/2023