Preclinical and Clinical Studies of Hyaluronic Acid in Wound Care: A Case Series and Literature Review

Esterified hyaluronic acid is part of a unique dressing that can be used for the treatment of difficult, nonprogressive wounds, including venous leg ulcers (VLUs) and diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs). The data presented herein represent a small retrospective sample of the authors' clinical experience with this unique material. Data were collected from 6 patients with DFUs and 3 patients with VLUs. Patients were assessed at regular intervals, and the change in wound size as well as the percentage of necrotic versus granular tissue were tracked. The average time for evaluation was 55.25 days (SD = 2.76 days). During this period, the average change in wound size decreased by 6.43 cm2 (SD = 7.55 cm2), from 7.93 cm2 (SD = 8.12 cm2) to 1.50 cm2 (SD = 0.92 cm2), and developed an increase of 74.38% (SD = 32.01%) coverage with granulation tissue from 46.11% (SD = 22.05%), representing about a 50% increase in granulation tissue over the 55 days of evaluation. The presented literature supports the contention that hyaluronic acid is a critical component in the complex cascade of wound healing and most likely is responsible for the clinical wound improvement in the case series presented.