Tualang Honey Hydrogel in the Treatment of Split-Skin Graft Donor Sites

Abstract

Hydrogel is a an established wound dressing. In this prospective single arm study the benefits conferred when tualang honey was added to a hydrogel dressing were investigated with regards to the healing of split skin graft donor sites. Efficacy was evaluated by examining rates of wound healing and pain during the healing of split-skin graft donor using Tualang Honey Hydrogel. Patients who underwent split skin grafting were screened and those who met the inclusion criteria were recruited from the patient population in Hospital Universiti Sains Malaysia (HUSM) over a period of 18 months. Individual informed consent was obtained from each patient. Thirty-five patients received Honey Hydrogel dressing applied to their split skin graft donor sites. All donor sites were inspected on the 10, 15 and 20th post-operative day. Complete healing between post-operative day 10 and post-operative day 15 was observed, with minimal pain, discomfort and pruritus. Honey Hydrogel may be effective in the treatment of split-skin graft donor sites, warranting further studies to compare it with existing dressing materials.