Objective: Our aim was to examine histopathological changes in three chronic wounds, and to assess whether the application of negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) changes the wound bed environment.
Method: - Results: We recruited three patients were recruited who had a non-healing wounds in excess of eight weeks. Histopathological changes in the wound bed supported the evidence that NPWT changes the wound bed environment by reducing inflammatory damage and facilitating wound bed perfusion with angiogenesis.
Conclusion: We suggest that NPWT is a valuable adjunct to aid chronic wound healing. In this case series, we observed histopathological changes and improvement in the wounds, following one week's treatment with NPWT. Further analysis should be done to demonstrate any interaction between the cells involved in the wound healing process is enhanced, growth factor performance is optimised and cell migration is achieved following NPWT, in order to facilitate the healing process.
Keywords: angiogenesis; chronic wounds; histopathological change; negative pressure wound therapy.