The use of fetal bovine collagen on chronic wounds increases limb salvage: a single-center retrospective analysis.

As part of a quality assurance project at a large tertiary care surgical program in New York City, the effect of debridement, negative pressure wound therapy, and cellular- and tissue-based products (CTPs) on limb salvage was evaluated based on the following outcomes: freedom from amputation, wound closure, and freedom from readmission. Fetal bovine collagen was among the CTPs evaluated. The data used in this study were derived from a database of all patients who had undergone procedures involving placement of a dermal matrix at the center over a 2.5-year period (January 2016-June 2018). This retrospective analysis included 256 patients who underwent debridement and/or placement of a CTP as part of the treatment course for chronic wounds. Of the 252 patients identified, 34 required either minor or major all-cause amputation from the initial wound intervention, whereas for 218 patients, there were no recorded amputations through the end of the study period after the initial wound intervention. When fetal bovine collagen was evaluated as an explanatory variable to the presence of future amputation, a statistically significant relationship between the variables was found. The results of the current data analysis indicate that a treatment algorithm that includes appropriate antibiotic therapy, tangential hydrosurgery, application of fetal bovine collagen, and a short course of negative pressure wound therapy may be a more favorable option to achieve limb salvage, freedom from readmission, and wound closure.