Antimicrobial photodynamic therapy in skin wound healing: A systematic review of animal studies

Sun, Y. and Ogawa, R. and Xiao, B. H. and Feng, Y. X. and Wu, Y. and Chen, L. H. and Gao, X. H. and Chen, H. D.

Int Wound J (2020) 17: 285–299

DOI: 10.1111/iwj.13269

Abstract

Bacterial infection is a common wound complication that can significantly delay healing. Classical local therapies for infected wounds are expensive and are frequently ineffective. One alternative therapy is photodynamic therapy (PDT). We conducted a systematic review to clarify whether PDT is useful for bacteria-infected wounds in animal models. PubMed and Medline were searched for articles on PDT in infected skin wounds in animals. The language was limited to English. Nineteen articles met the inclusion criteria. The overall study methodological quality was moderate, with a low-moderate risk of bias. The animal models were mice and rats. The wounds were excisional, burn, and abrasion wounds. Wound size ranged from 6 mm in diameter to 1.5 × 1.5 cm(2) . Most studies inoculated the wounds with Pseudomonas aeruginosa or methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Eleven and 17 studies showed that the PDT of infected wounds significantly decreased wound size and bacterial counts, respectively. Six, four, and two studies examined the effect of PDT on infected wound-cytokine levels, wound-healing time, and body weight, respectively. Most indicated that PDT had beneficial effects on these variables. PDT accelerated bacteria-infected wound healing in animals by promoting wound closure and killing bacteria.

Citation

Sun, Y., Ogawa, R., Xiao, B. H., Feng, Y. X., Wu, Y., Chen, L. H., Gao, X. H., & Chen, H. D. (2020). Antimicrobial photodynamic therapy in skin wound healing: A systematic review of animal studies. Int Wound J, 17(2), 285–299. https://doi.org/10.1111/iwj.13269 Animals, Disease Models, Animal, Anti-Bacterial Agents/*therapeutic use, Wound Healing/*drug effects, Photochemotherapy/*methods, Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus/*drug effects/isolation & purification, Soft Tissue Injuries/*drug therapy, Staphylococcal Infections/*drug therapy/microbiology, Wound Infection/*drug therapy/microbiology

Keywords

• Animals
• Disease Models
• Animal
• Anti-Bacterial Agents/*therapeutic use
• Wound Healing/*drug effects
• Photochemotherapy/*methods
• Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus/*drug effects/isolation & purification
• Soft Tissue Injuries/*drug therapy
• Staphylococcal Infections/*drug therapy/microbiology
• Wound Infection/*drug therapy/microbiology