Improved outcome of surgical flaps treated with topical dimethylsulfoxide

What Was Tested

This randomized controlled trial paper looks at DMSO (dimethyl sulfoxide, non-peptide solvent).

The objective of this study was to analyze the effect of dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) on skin flap viability.

Why It Was Studied

The authors performed a randomized, prospective study on the effect of DMSO on skin flap viability in patients undergoing mastectomy and inguinal lymphadenectomy.

Who Took Part

The abstract describes 27 patients taking part.

The age groups tagged for this paper are middle-aged adults.

How the Study Was Run

The design is described as randomized.

Because people in this DMSO (dimethyl sulfoxide, non-peptide solvent) study were split into groups at random, differences between the groups are less likely to reflect who happened to join each one.

The maximum area of flap ischemia was traced by a masked observer and measured by cut and weigh technique.

What Was Measured

The subject headings attached to it are Administration, Topical, Dimethyl Sulfoxide, Graft Survival, Groin, Ischemia, Lymph Node Excision and Mastectomy.

What This Means in Plain Language

The paper is a randomized study of DMSO (dimethyl sulfoxide, non-peptide solvent) in 27 patients.

With fewer than 40 people, it is a small study, so it is better read as an early signal for further research than as a settled answer.

The abstract goes on to report its results in about 3 sentences; this page does not restate them, so read the paper for the findings and their limits.

The publication is from 1996 (Annals of surgery), a journal based in United States.

More context: the DMSO (dimethyl sulfoxide, non-peptide solvent) compound page, all human trials.