Effects of living skin equivalent on calciphylaxis-induced skin necrosis wounds - Case studies

Dialysis-dependent patients with calciphylaxis-induced skin wounds are poor candidates for autologous skin grafting because of the risk of creating new wounds at donor sites. To determine if a bilayered living skin equivalent (LSE) aids in the closure of these wounds, case studies of a 79-year-old woman and a 27-year-old woman with multiple calciphylaxis-induced necrotic skin wounds are presented. Wounds were debrided and covered with pieces of LSE. LSE therapy effectively closed the wounds. Reduction in wound size was noted by five to fourteen days. Reepithelialization occurred within three to four weeks in one patient and four to sixteen weeks in the other. The largest wound, which originally measured 450cm(2), healed completely. Thus, full wound closure was achieved with calciphylaxis-induced necrotic skin wounds treated with LSE. These results suggest the benefits of this therapy for this difficult-to-treat condition.