DETERMINATION OF THE FLUID HOLDING CAPACITY (FHC) OF A NEW DEBRIDER* COMPARED TO CONVENTIONAL COTTON GAUZE Cornelia Wiegand1, Kirsten Reddersen1, Martin Abel2, Jeanette Muldoon3, Peter Ruth2, Uta-Christina Hipler1 1Department of Dermatology, University Medical Center Jena (Jena, Germany); 2Lohmann & Rauscher GmbH & Co.KG (Rengsdorf, Germany); 3Activa Healthcare (Burton upon Trent, United Kingdom).

1. Klinik für Hautkrankheiten
C. Wiegand1, K. Reddersen1, M. Abel2, Muldoon J3, P. Ruth2, U.-Ch. Hipler1
1Department of Dermatology, University Medical Center Jena, Jena, Germany
2Lohmann & Rauscher GmbH & Co. KG, Rengsdorf, Germany
3Activa Healthcare, Burton upon Trent, United Kingdom
Determination of the fluid holding capacity (FHC)
of a new debrider*
compared to conventional cotton gauze
* Debrisoft®; Lohmann & Rauscher

2. Klinik für Hautkrankheiten
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Introduction
Chronic wounds contain devitalized, necrotic or sloughy tissue that impedes healing as it acts as proinflammatory
stimulus or serves as media for microorganisms [1]. For mechanical debridement mainly wet-to-dry gauze is used, which
nondiscriminatorily removes devitalized tissue from the wound, resulting in pain and damaged healthy tissue [2]. A new
debrider consisting of polyester monofilament fibres (figure 1) presents a novel, fast and almost painless option for
debridement. Furthermore, a high fluid holding capacity (FHC) would be beneficial for taking up excess amounts of
wound exudates.
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Figure 1: Mechanical debridement with the new debrider. Insert: SEM of
the polyester monofilament fibres.
Material & Methods
We have investigated the FHC of the new debrider
in vitro and compared it to cotton gauze. Therefore,
samples were soaked in (a) distilled water, (b) 5%
BSA, and (c) 10% BSA solution (figure 2). Sample
weight was immediately determined and samples
were then dried at 80°C for 4h.
Figure 2: Schematic representation of soaking the samples in
the respective solutions..
[1] Sibbald et al. Advances in Skin & Wound Care 2011; 24(9):415-436 [2] Fallabella AF. Dermatol Ther 2006; 19(6):317-325

3. Klinik für Hautkrankheiten
Results
FHC of dry debrider pads slightly decreased with increasing BSA concentration. In contrast, FHC of pre-wetted debrider
improved significantly with higher BSA content. For dry cotton gauze, a significant decrease of FHC with increasing
protein concentration was observed with significantly inferior performance of the pre-wetted gauze. With increasing BSA
concentration the FHC of pre-wetted debrider was found to be superior compared to pre-wetted gauze.
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Conclusion
The new wound debrider presents a novel, fast, and almost painless option for debridement. Due to its physicochemical
nature it has an advantage compared to gauze with regard to fluid holding capacity (FHC). It was shown that the best
results for FHCs at high protein concentrations were obtained with pre-wetted debrider. Hence, this new technique
should provide a valuable tool in treatment of patients with chronic wounds.
a b c d e f g h i j k l
0,0
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10
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FHCmL/g
0% BSA
5% BSA
10% BSA
FHC[mL/g]
dry pre-wetted dry pre-wetted
cotton gauze debrider
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4. Klinik für Hautkrankheiten
Thank you for your attention!
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