ConvaTec, a world-leading developer and marketer of innovative medical technologies for community and hospital care, announced today that it has provided support for the development of guidelines for the appropriate use of negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) in the spectrum of wound healing. Unique to these guidelines are recommendations for integrating NPWT into a comprehensive plan of care that includes moist wound healing dressings and other treatment modalities.
In September 2009, an international panel of wound care experts from multiple disciplines convened to develop the guidelines document to provide healthcare professionals with an understanding of where NPWT fits into treatment paradigms for acute and chronic complex wounds, including surgical/traumatic wounds, pressure ulcers, and diabetic foot and leg ulcers. Included in the guidelines are criteria to initiate NPWT based on various wound types, pre-application management to optimize treatment outcomes, identification of appropriate candidates for NPWT, benchmark indicators for treatment response, and recommendations on when to transition between NPWT and moist wound healing dressings or another treatment modality.
The goal of these guidelines is to encourage responsible wound management across the continuum of healthcare settings and spectrum of wound pathologies so that positive and cost effective patient outcomes can be achieved.
"In today's healthcare environment, there are numerous factors influencing decisions on protocols of care," states Dr. Vickie R. Driver, MS, DPM, FACFAS, Associate Professor of Surgery, Director of Clinical Research, Endovascular, Vascular and Foot Care Specialists, Boston University, Boston Medical Center, Boston, MA, who was a member of the panel that developed the guidelines. "Healthcare providers must ensure that their assessments, treatment pathways and product selections are both clinically and economically sound. This guidance document will be a valuable resource for helping clinicians consider where NPWT and other treatment modalities such as moist wound healing dressings appropriately fit within a comprehensive plan of care for a number of complex acute and chronic wounds."
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