The study of pressure delivery for hypertrophic scar treatment

Pressure garments have been used prophylactically and to treat hypertrophic scars, resulting from serious burns, since the early 1970s. They are custom-made from elastic fabrics by commercial producers and occupational therapists. However, no clear scientifically established method has ever been published for their manufacture from powernet fabrics. The earlier work identified the most commonly used fabrics and construction methods for the production of pressure garments by occupational therapists in UK burn units. These methods have now been evaluated by measuring the pressures delivered to both cylinder models and to human limbs using I-scan® pressure sensors. The effect of cylinder/limb circumference and the effects of the fabric and reduction factor used in pressure garment construction on pressures exerted have now been established. These measurements confirm the limitations of current pressure garment construction methods used in UK hospitals. These results were also used to evaluate the Laplace law for the prediction of interface pressures. © Emerald Group Publishing Limited.