A U G U S T 2 0 1 8 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y. N E T • 4 1
Smith & Nephew
PICO Single Use Negative Pressure Wound Therapy
Smith & Nephew's battery-operated wound dressing comes with a
small pump and is comprised of 4 layers: One layer pulls fluid out and
away from the wound, a second layer evenly distributes negative pres-
sure over the entire area, a third holds the fluid or bacteria that's
pulled out and the fourth layer evaporates it all.
I usually change the dressing with my patients a day or two after
surgery, when draining has diminished, but the company says the
PICO dressing is designed to manage leakers. You put it on right after
surgery and can keep it on for 7 days. It can hold up to 300 mls of
fluid, they say, which is impressive.
It's pretty ingenious, and the company says it has data showing
that it reduces hematomas and readmission rates. I'm interested to
see how data develops over time. If it reduces infections, and it cer-
tainly makes sense that it would, the roughly $250 price tag will be a
good investment.
