Efficacy of glutathione mesotherapy in burns: an experimental study.

BACKGROUND: Thermal burns are the leading cause of trauma worldwide. Currently, no consensus on optimal treatment of deep partial-thickness (second-degree) burns has emerged, as reflected by the wide variability in available wound-care materials. The relative efficacies of products used for treatment of partial-thickness thermal burns remain unclear. Mesotherapy features intradermal administration of various agents, depending on burn location. In the present experimental study, we explored the efficacy of mesotherapy used to treat partial-thickness thermal burns in 50 male Wistar rats divided into five groups of equal number. No procedure was performed after infliction of thermal burns in control group (Group 1). Mesotherapy was applied with physiological saline in sham group (Group 2), glutathione, taurine, and L-carnitine were separately applied in Group 3, Group 4, and Group 5, respectively.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Mesotherapeutic agents were injected intradermally into the reticular layer of the dermis using the point technique. The first course of mesotherapy was given within the first 2 h after infliction of thermal burns, and therapy was continued to day 10. On day 22, unhealed thermal burn areas were measured prior to sacrifice, and biopsies covering the total areas of burns were performed to allow of pathological evaluation.

RESULTS: Group 3 (the glutathione group) showed the best extent of healing, followed by Group 4 (the taurine group) and Group 5 (the L-carnitine group). The healed thermal burn areas in these groups were significantly greater than those in the control and sham groups (P = 0.001). All of healing, acute and chronic inflammation, the amount of granulation tissue, the level of fibroblast maturation, the amount of collagen, the extent of re-epithelization and neovascularization, and ulcer depth were scored upon pathological examination of tissue cross-sections. The best outcomes were evident in the glutathione group, with statistical significance. Although wound healing in the L-carnitine and taurine groups was better than in the control and sham groups, the differences were not statistically significant.

CONCLUSION: Thus, glutathione mesotherapy was effective when used to treat partial-thickness thermal burns and may be a useful treatment option for various human burns.