Clinical course of more than 10 years in a patient with extensive skin burns who received cultured epidermal autograft transplantation

Abstract

Cultured epidermal autografts (CEAs) are used to treat extensive burns, giant congenital melanocytic nevi, and epidermolysis bullosa, but information about the long-term clinical course after CEA transplantation is scarce. Here we report 10 years’ progress of a 7-year-old Japanese girl who suffered from a scald burn injury affecting 80% of her total body surface area and was treated with CEA transplantation. The skin of a child with extensive burns treated with CEAs appeared soft and of a good texture, even after 10 years, and recovery of skin pigmentation and scar condition were better at sites with a combination of CEAs and autologous skin grafts than those with CEAs alone.

Keywords

• Cultured epidermal autograft
• Extensive burns
• Long-term observation
• Skin surface hydration
• Skin pigmentation