Hydrocolloid dressing

Uses

The dressing is applied to a cleaned wound, and usually used to treat uninfected wounds. The dressings may be used, under medical supervision and with an antibiotic to treat the infection, even where aerobic bacterial infection is present.

In addition to treating abrasions, minor incisions and lacerations, and superficial puncture wounds, hydrocolloid dressings are used to cover skin-graft donor sites, burns, and cutaneous ulcers (including pressure ulcers or "bed sores", venous ulcers, and diabetic foot ulcers).

Small hydrocolloid patches are sometimes also used for acne, to heal the pimples and avoid scars from them.

Large dressings with a consistent, adhesive film across the active side (rather than a central pad of hydrocolloid foam) can be cut into smaller strips or other shapes, for use in place of a traditional adhesive bandage of the same size.

An indirectly medical use of strips of hydrocolloid dressing is as an alternative to surgical tape, e.g. to secure a nasogastric tube or CPAP mask to a patient's face.

Efficacy

Hydrocolloid has been shown to be superior to other dressing substrates (e.g., alginate, film, gauze, hydrofiber, or silicone) tested for treating skin-graft donor sites.

There is tentative but unclear () evidence for the efficacy of hydrocolloid dressings for superficial and partial-thickness burns.

The results of meta-analyses indicate no significant difference in healing rates between hydrocolloid dressings and other dressings (including simple gauze dressings) for venous ulcers, or for diabetic foot ulcers.

History

The term "hydrocolloid" was coined in the 1960s during the development of mucoadhesives, first used to treat mouth ulcers. The term was later adopted for a new dressing type in which a hydrophilic gelable mass was applied to a flexible semipermeable carrier. It was first sold under the brand Granuflex in the United Kingdom in 1982, and then DuoDERM in the United States in 1983. Different products subsequently came to market with slightly varying formulations, designed for specific areas of the body or specific purposes (for example, postoperative dressings). More recently, the term has sometimes been used to describe hydrogel dressings which are fundamentally different to hydrocolloid dressings.

References

References

1. (2009). "Advanced Textiles for Wound Care". Elsevier.
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3. (14 July 1997). "World Wide Wounds: A comparative study of the properties of twelve hydrocolloid dressings". Surgical Materials Testing Laboratory, Bridgend and District NHS Trust.
4. (October 2018). "Clinical Review: Hydrocolloid Dressings (HCDs)". NHS Supply Chain (NHS Clinical Evaluation Team).
5. Cortés, Olga L. (2023-12-07). "Impact of hydrocolloid dressings in the prevention of pressure ulcers in high-risk patients: a randomized controlled trial (PENFUP)". Scientific Reports.
6. Norman, Gill. (2018-06-15). "Dressings and topical agents for treating venous leg ulcers". Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.
7. "NHS Borders Wound Formulary: Primary Care and Acute Joint Formulary". NHS Borders.
8. "Surgical Materials Testing Laboratory Dressings Datacard: Bordered Granuflex".
9. (2021). "Braddom's Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation". Elsevier.
10. (June 2017). "Treating pain on skin graft donor sites: Review and clinical recommendations". The Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery.
11. (28 March 2013). "Dressings for superficial and partial thickness burns". The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.
12. (2008). "A systematic review of the use of hydrocolloids in the treatment of pressure ulcers". Journal of Clinical Nursing.
13. (6 May 2014). "Dressings for healing venous leg ulcers". The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.
14. (6 August 2013). "Hydrocolloid dressings for healing diabetic foot ulcers". The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.
15. Massick, Susan. (21 December 2020). "This TikTok acne remedy really does work".
16. Thomas, Stephen. (2008-10-01). "Hydrocolloid dressings in the management of acute wounds: a review of the literature". International Wound Journal.