19. February 2019  |  News

Wound treatment with cold plasma

More and more patients suffer from chronic, non-healing wounds - especially in the context of intravenous substance consumption. In addition, chronic wounds are often infected with bacteria and resistant germs, which makes the healing process even more difficult.

For a long time, classical wound cleansing (debridement) with the application of bandages or vacuum therapy were the only treatment options. The therapy is often lengthy and in many cases does not lead to healing of the wound.

A new and effective method has recently become available: Cold plasma therapy. Since last spring, Arud has had a cold plasma device and offers such a therapy.

What is plasma?

Plasma is an aggregate state that is reached when additional energy is supplied to a gas. Plasma is also referred to as the fourth aggregate state - after solids, liquids and gases. The lightning that discharges during a thunderstorm are vivid examples of this phenomenon.

While thermal plasmas have been used in medicine for over two decades, the use of cold plasma is relatively new: thanks to technical innovations, it has become possible to generate cold plasma in a controlled manner. Since it does not interact thermally with tissues, cold plasma is suitable for use on living cells and thus opens up completely new application possibilities.

How does cold plasma work?

Cold plasma shows a number of effects in dermatological application which are very beneficial for the healing process:

  • Strongly anti-inflammatory
  • Antimicrobial: kills a wide range of bacteria, spores, viruses and fungi
  • promotes wound healing, stimulates cell proliferation and migration
  • Increases collagen synthesis

How does the therapy work?

The application of cold plasma is non-invasive, contact-free and painless. The therapy is therefore highly accepted by patients.

In order to stimulate wound healing, the wound is treated with plasma for a short period of time. The antibacterial effect of the cold plasma in combination with the mechanical stimulation of the wound bed leads to wound activation and cell growth.

The type and duration of plasma therapy depends on the specific wound ratio. As a rule, the patient comes by 1-2 times a week. Already after a few sessions, an improvement in wound healing can be seen - even in wounds where the healing process came to a standstill months or even years ago.

So far, neither the development of resistance nor side effects or complications are known. Therapy therefore usually leads to a great improvement in the quality of life of people with chronic wounds.
We are at your disposal for further information about the therapy.

For information

Regina Esser
Co-Head of General Internal Medicine +41 58 360 50 00 mail arud@arud.ch
Tina Horschik
Head Nurse General Internal Medicine +41 58 360 50 00 mail arud@arud.ch