Trial of Versajet Compared With Conventional Treatment in Acute and Chronic Wounds

Not Applicable

Completed

Conditions: Surgical Wound Dehiscence

Interventions: Device: VERSAJET
Procedure: Scalpel or blade

Registration Number: NCT01050673

Lead Sponsor: Smith & Nephew, Inc.

Brief Summary: It is increasingly recognised that the debridement of devitalised, bacterially contaminated or senescent tissue is an essential component of the effective treatment of delayed healing wounds.

Whilst surgical debridement procedures have conventionally been performed with scalpels and other sharp instrumentation, alternative techniques such as the VERSAJET Hydrosurgery System are becoming more widespread.

To increase the adoption of this new technology, it is essential that clinical improvements are assessed alongside the potential impact on the costs of debridement and the net financial impact on the hospital.

It is hypothesised that a decrease in the time to achieve stable wound closure will not only lead to a patient benefit, but also a potential reduction in the cost of treatment due to e.g. repeat procedures, longer hospital stay, infection etc. The purpose of this study is to investigate the difference in time to closure of wounds surgically excised with VERSAJET Hydrosurgery System and those surgically excised using conventional operating room techniques.

Detailed Description: It is increasingly recognised that the debridement of devitalised, bacterially contaminated or senescent tissue is an essential component of the effective treatment of delayed healing wounds. Whilst passive autolytic or enzymatic debridement procedures have their place, where patients are unable to tolerate any surgical procedure, the judicious use of surgical debridement to rapidly remove necrotic, contaminated tissue and slough has been shown to offer many advantages in returning a wound to a healing trajectory.

Whilst surgical debridement procedures have conventionally been performed with scalpels and other sharp instrumentation, alternative techniques such as the VERSAJET Hydrosurgery System are becoming more widespread.

To increase the adoption of this new technology, it is essential that clinical improvements are assessed alongside the potential impact on the costs of debridement and the net financial impact on the hospital. In fiscal year 2004, there were more than 57,000 discharges under DRG code 217 ('wound debridement and skin graft except hand) in the United States. Mean length of stay (all payers) was 11 days and mean charges were $52,800. In 2005, Medicare funded 15,800 discharges under this code. Average charges for these patients were $56,500 and average reimbursement was $18,2654. In this context it is particularly important that the potential patient benefit and cost impact of new technology is fully assessed.

It is hypothesised that a decrease in the time to achieve stable wound closure will not only lead to a patient benefit, but also a potential reduction in the cost of treatment due to e.g. repeat procedures, longer hospital stay, infection etc. The purpose of this study is to investigate the difference in time to closure of wounds surgically excised with VERSAJET Hydrosurgery System and those surgically excised using conventional operating room techniques.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status: COMPLETED

Sex: All

Target Recruitment: 40

Inclusion Criteria

Patients aged 18 years and older
Male, and female patients (provided they are not pregnant and if of reproductive age are using contraception)
Patients with a delayed healing traumatic wound or chronic cutaneous defect of 30 days or more in duration, or a delayed healing dehisced incision that requires excision to remove necrotic or infected tissue
Patients who are deemed to require closure by primary intention or definitive cover with an autologous split-thickness skin graft (STSG) or flap
Patients who are hospital in-patients, or will be an in-patient for the period of 1st excision to closure
Patients deemed suitable for debridement with both VERSAJET Hydrosurgery System and conventional operating room techniques
Patients undergoing surgical excision of their reference wound in the operating room (OR)
Patients able to understand the evaluation and willing to consent to the evaluation

Exclusion Criteria

Patients who have previously undergone surgical excision of the reference wound by the Principal Investigator in the last 30 days
Patients with coagulopathy (including those with haemophilia)
Patients with vasculitis, non-reconstructive peripheral vascular disease, pyoderma granulosa, renal failure or lymphoedema
Patients with irradiated, burn or ischaemic wounds
Patients with a BMI >35
Patients deemed to require a staged procedure, with hospital discharge occurring between procedures
Patients deemed to require biological dressings / skin substitutes
Patients for whom wound healing by secondary intention is deemed necessary
Patients who have been treated with systemic immunosuppressants (including corticosteroids), or cytotoxic chemotherapy in the last 30 days, or who are anticipated to require such medications during the course of the study
Patients known to have Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) or known to be infected with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)
Patients with a known history of poor compliance with medical treatment
Patients who have participated in this evaluation previously or who are currently participating in another clinical study

Study & Design

Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL

Study Design: PARALLEL

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
VERSAJET	VERSAJET	Excision with VERSAJET™ Hydrosurgery System
Conventional Therapy	Scalpel or blade	Conventional operating room excision will consist of sharp instrumentation and electrocautery techniques, with the use of pulse lavage at the investigator's discretion. The type of sharp instrumentation, together with the brand of pulse lavage will be recorded.

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Difference in Time to Closure Between Wounds Surgically Excised With VERSAJET™ Hydrosurgery System and Those Surgically Excised Using Conventional Operating Room Techniques.	28 days plus 6 week follow-up

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Cost of Reference Wound-related Surgical Procedures to Achieve Closure	28 days
Quantitative Bacteriology From Standardised Tissue Biopsies Pre- /Post- 1st Excision & Pre-closure	28 days
Percentage of Patients Achieving Stable Closure Within Study Period	28 days
Time of Actual Excision Procedure	28 days
Cost Per Operative Procedure	28 days
Length of Hospital Stay (1st Excision to Discharge (Days))	28 days
Number of Patient's With Wound-related Readmissions	28 days and 6 week follow up
Number of Patient's With Serious Adverse Events and Relationship to Device	28 days