Honey wound dressings improve healing rates

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Honey wound dressings improve healing rates - Manuka producer

http://nz.news./a/-/top-stories/5027247

 

A clinical trial in Ireland has shown its Medihoney wound dressings using biologically-active New Zealand manuka honey improve the healing of leg ulcers.

Before the 108-patient study, no other advanced wound care dressing had been shown to improve healing rates of venous leg ulcers under the standard treatment known as compression therapy, honey maker Comvita said.

A control group of half the patients had a common advanced wound care gel added to the standard treatment, and half had the manuka dressing added.

After four weeks, the wounds treated with honey reduced an average 34 percent, and in the control group the reduction was only 13 percent, according to a report in the Journal of Clinical Nursing.

After 12 weeks, there was a 44 percent complete healing rate in the honey group compared with 33 percent in the control group.

Comvita chief executive Brett Hewlett said wound care was a major healthcare market with an estimated value of $10 billion in 2007, which was expected to grow to $12.5b by 2012.

The global growth was being driven by aging populations, rising incidence of diabetes and chronic vascular disorders, and a steady advancement in wound care technologies.