ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: Since Rheinwald and Green laid the foundation of epidermal cell culture technology in 1975, many clinicians and scientists have attempted to prove the effectiveness of cultured epidermal autologous(CEA) or homogenetic(CEH) grafts in the wound healing process. In contrast to CEA which cultured from a patient's skin on demand, Cultured Epidermal Homograft (CEH) can be readily available to use on cleaned wounds. In this study, we conducted a controlled clinical trial in order to confirm the effectiveness of CEH in treating partial-thickness 2nd degree burn wounds. METHODS: From July 2003 to January 2004 at Hangang Sacred Heart Hospital, we performed a clinical trial in which 35 patients who suffered from 2nd degree burns were enrolled. Wounds were randomly divided into two parts, control and test sites. Test sites were treated with allogeneic keratinocyte sheets (Kaloderm(R), Tegoscience Inc.), a CEH commercialized in Korea. RESULTS: All wounds healed completely without any major complication. The complete healing took 8.3+/- 2.8(mean+/-S.D.) days in the test sites as opposed to 11.7+/-3.3 days in the control sites. CONCLUSION: Based on these results, we concluded that CEH accelerates re-epithelialization of partial thickness burn wounds and CEH can be an safe alternative to skin grafts for 2nd degree burns.