INTRODUCTION

Microbial invasion in soft tissue is believed to cause infectious wounds and increase healthcare costs, anxiety, and distress. The current study was conducted to evaluate the effects of topical use of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) on infected wound-healing process in rats.

METHODS

Following the induction of a circular wound, the animals were divided into three groups, including (1) standard control: infected wounds treated with mupirocin (SDCL), (2) non-infected wounds treated with PRP (PRP), and (3) infected group in which the rats were infected with Staphylococcus epidermidis and Pseudomonas aeruginosa and treated with PRP (INF + PRP). To evaluate the effects of PRP on the wound-healing rate, total bacterial count, histopathological assessment, the serum concentrations of sialic acid, C-reactive protein, haptoglobin, and fibrinogen were assessed. Additionally, IL-1β, IL-6, TNF-α, IL-3, NF-κB, iNOS, PDGF, and EGF mRNA level expressions were assessed employing the qRT-PCR method.

RESULTS

The results indicated that topical application of PRP could significantly decrease total bacterial count, the level of C-reactive protein, and pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α) compared to the SDCL group. The administration of PRP also promoted re-epithelization rate by increasing the expression of EGF mRNA level.

CONCLUSION

We could recommend the use of PRP for the treatment of infected wounds owing to its efficiency in decreasing colonization of tissue bacteria, tissue inflammation, and stimulating wound heal-up.