Zinc topical and iontophoresis approaches in treatment of standardized leg burns: animal model

This study was designed to compare the effects of Zinc application [Topical and Iontophoresis approaches] on burn wound healing of rats. It included 30 albino rats with second degree burn wound in their left hind limb and were divided randomly into two groups of equal number, 15 rats each, the first one received topical zinc and the other one received zinc iontophoresis. The parameters used for evaluation involved burn surface area measured by tracing wound perimeter and quantitative culture [number of bacterial growth] as an index of burn wound healing, pre and post treatment applications [after one and two weeks]. These two parameters were measured 24 hours post-inflicted burn and 2 times post initiation of zinc therapy at one week interval and the same for colony count. The pre treatment results revealed no significant difference between the mean values of both parameters of both groups, while after two weeks of treatment applications, the findings showed that there was a significant difference between pre treatment and post two weeks for both groups with higher improvement in zinc iontophoresis group. Therefore, it may be of value for physical therapist to consider zinc iontophoresis as a method for treating burn patients

Efficacy of post operative intermittent positive pressure breathing on lung capacity after cholecystectomy

This study is designed to investigate the additional effect of intermittent positive pressure to chest physical therapy to improve lung functions and prevent pulmonary complications after cholecystectomy. Thirty patients schedualed for cholecystectomy were included in the present study. They were randomly assigned into two groups: Group [A], fifteen patients who received routine postoperative physical therapy program only, and Group [B], included 15 patients who received routine postoperative physical therapy program in addition to non-invasive intermittent positive pressure breathing. Evaluation of post operative pulmonary complications included pulmonary function test to measure vital capacity value which recorded 48 hours preoperatively, 24 hours post operative, 5[th] day post operative and day before discharge. The results of this study revealed a significant reduction in the vital capacity 24 hours post operative and gradual improvement at the end of fifth day post operative and day before discharge in the control group, but it was still below the pre operative values. Conversely there was a significant increase in the vital capacity at the day before discharge compared with pre operative value in the IPPB group, suggesting that intermittent positive pressure breathing plays an important role in improving chest expansion and mobility informs of alternating lung capacity for patients who have had cholecyctectomy