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Photochemical
tissue bonding in skin grafting - An ex vivo study
CHAN, Barbara1,
Redmond, Robert1 and Kochevar, Irene1
Wellman Laboratories of Photomedicine, Massachusetts General Hospital,
Harvard Medical School, Boston MA1
Abstract-
Background: Photochemical tissue bonding using a laser and a
photosensitizing dye produces strong covalent crosslinks without thermal
damage to the tissue. It has numerous clinical applications in tissue
grafting and wound closure. The current ex vivo study investigated
whether argon laser (514 nm) irradiation in the presence of the photosensitizing
dye Rose Bengal enhances the attachment of skin grafts. Methodology:
Pig skin harvested by dermatome (~400 micron thick) was cut into 1-cm2
pieces and 6-mm diameter biopsies. The square pieces were fixed to a
tensiometer with the dermal side facing upward to simulate the host
tissue, and the circular biopsies, the grafts, were connected to the
transducer. After application of 0.1% Rose Bengal solution, the tissues
were brought into close dermal-dermal contact. The approximated samples
were irradiated through the 6mm biopsy and immediately the adherence
of the graft tissue was measured as the shear stress at the interface.
Laser dose-response relationships up to 504 J/cm2 at both
a low (0.56 W/cm2) and a high (1.68 W/cm2) irradiance
were obtained. Results: The adherence at the graft-host interface
was increased for at least 2-10 fold after exposures to laser at 252-504
J/cm2 in the presence of the dye. ANOVA showed that the increase
was statistically significant (p=0.001). Conclusion: Photochemical
tissue bonding using 514nm and Rose Bengal shows promise for enhancing
the adherence of skin grafts. Future studies on the efficacy of this
treatment for skin grafting in animal models are necessary prior to
applying this technology in clinical situations.
Keywords: Photochemical
tissue bonding, Argon laser, Rose Bengal, Skin grafting
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