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Introduction: The purpose of this meta-analysis was to determine the value and efficacy of skin perfusion pressure (SPP) for the prediction of wound healing in patients with critical limb ischemia.Material and Methods: Medline, Cochrane, EMBASE, and Google Scholar databases were searched from inception until December 31, 2014 using combinations of the following keywords: skin perfusion pressure, limb ischemia, wound healing, prediction. Randomized controlled trials, 2-arm prospective studies, and retrospective studies that measured SPP in patients with limb ischemia were included. The outcome was the sensitivity and specificity of SPP for the prediction of wound healing.Results: Five studies were included in the meta-analysis. The mean patient age ranged from 62.2 to 71.5 years, and the majority were male. The pooled sensitivity of SPP for the prediction of wound healing was 79.9% using 30 mm Hg as the cut-off, 67.1% using 40 mm Hg, and 76.1% for all included studies (95% CI: 73.9-84.9%, 55.8-76.8%, and 70.7-80.8%, respectively). The pooled specificity was 78.2% using 30 mm Hg, 84.2% using 40 mm Hg, and 82.1% for all included studies (95% CI: 61.5-89.0%, 74.0-90.9%, 73.7-88.3%, respectively).Conclusions: Skin perfusion pressure can accurately predict wound healing in patients with critical limb ischemia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recombinant human growth hormone (rhGH) promotes protein utilization and synthesis, and is widely used as a therapy to treat severe burns. The present randomized controlled trial evaluated the effects of different forms of rhGH on patients with severe burns. A total of 29 adult severe burns patients were enrolled between February 2009 and November 2011, and randomly assigned to either treatment group (T, liquid rhGH) or control group (C, powder rhGH). From days 5 to 7 following the infliction of burns, both patient groups received rhGH at 0.067 mg/kg/d, once for 10 days. Median serum pre-albumin levels increased in both groups following treatment, the elevation from baseline was significantly higher in the T group on day 10 compared to the C group (88 mg/l vs. 65 mg/l, P=0.046). C-reactive protein, fasting plasma glucose and body weight decreased in both groups. Body weight was significantly lower in the T compared to the C group at baseline, Day 5 and Day 10 (P=0.046, P=0.018 and P=0.006, respectively), however the decrease from baseline levels were not significantly different. Wound healing time was similar between groups (P=0.270). In conclusion the early use of liquid rather than powder rhGH may be more beneficial for treating adult patients with severe burns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]