Moist dressing coverage supports proliferation and migration of transplanted skin micrografts in full-thickness porcine wounds

Transplantation of skin micrografts in a 1:100 ratio regenerate the epidermis of full-thickness wounds in pigs within 14 days in a wet environment. The aim of the current study was to combine micrografts and commercially available moist dressings. We hypothesized that micrografts regenerate the epidermis when covered with a moist dressing. 5 cm × 5 cm and 10 cm × 10 cm full-thickness wounds were created on the backs of pigs. Wounds were transplanted with 0.8 mm × 0.8 mm micrografts created from a split-thickness skin graft in a 1:100 ratio. 5 cm × 5 cm wounds were treated with wound chambers, moist dressings or dry gauze (non-transplanted control group). 10 cm × 10 cm wounds were compared to non-transplanted wounds, both covered with moist dressings. Reepithelialization was assessed in biopsies from day 10, 14 and 18 post-transplantation. 5 cm × 5 cm transplanted wounds covered with moist dressings showed 69.5 ± 20.6% reepithelialization by day 14 and 90.5 ± 10.4% by day 18, similar to wounds covered with a wound chamber (63.9 ± 16.7 and 86.2 ± 11.9%, respectively). 18 days post-transplantation, 10 cm × 10 cm transplanted wounds covered with moist dressings showed 66.1 ± 10.3% reepithelialization, whereas nontransplanted wounds covered with moist dressings were 40.6 ± 6.6% reepithelialized. We conclude that micrografts combined with clinically available moist dressings regenerate the epidermis of full-thickness wounds.