Finn Gottrup

Bio: Finn Gottrup is an academic researcher from Odense University Hospital. The author has contributed to research in topics: Oxygen tension & Wound healing. The author has an hindex of 33, co-authored 87 publications receiving 5729 citations. Previous affiliations of Finn Gottrup include University of Copenhagen.

Human skin wounds: a major and snowballing threat to public health and the economy.

Abstract: In the United States, chronic wounds affect 6.5 million patients. An estimated excess of US$25 billion is spent annually on treatment of chronic wounds and the burden is rapidly growing due to increasing health care costs, an aging population and a sharp rise in the incidence of diabetes and obesity worldwide. The annual wound care products market is projected to reach $15.3 billion by 2010. Chronic wounds are rarely seen in individuals who are otherwise healthy. In fact, chronic wound patients frequently suffer from "highly branded" diseases such as diabetes and obesity. This seems to have overshadowed the significance of wounds per se as a major health problem. For example, NIH's Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tool (RePORT; http://report.nih.gov/), directed at providing access to estimates of funding for various disease conditions does list several rare diseases but does not list wounds. Forty million inpatient surgical procedures were performed in the United States in 2000, followed closely by 31.5 million outpatient surgeries. The need for post-surgical wound care is sharply on the rise. Emergency wound care in an acute setting has major significance not only in a war setting but also in homeland preparedness against natural disasters as well as against terrorism attacks. An additional burden of wound healing is the problem of skin scarring, a $12 billion annual market. The immense economic and social impact of wounds in our society calls for allocation of a higher level of attention and resources to understand biological mechanisms underlying cutaneous wound complications.

Abstinence from smoking reduces incisional wound infection: A randomized controlled trial

Abstract: Smokers who undergo general and orthopedic surgery have a higher incidence of wound infections than nonsmokers.1-3 The proposed mechanism is a detrimental effect of smoking on tissue oxygen,4-8 which impairs the reparative processes of wound healing and the neutrophil defense against surgical pathogens.9-12 Clinical studies show that wound hypoxia predicts wound infection,13 and that perioperative supplemental oxygen increases tissue oxygen tension and decreases incisional wound infection.14,15 Recently, a study found that smoking intervention before hip and knee alloplasty reduces postoperative wound infections.16 We hypothesized that smoking abstinence enhances wound healing and decreases the risk of infection. Accordingly, we aimed to identify the optimal period of abstinence from smoking by evaluating wounds in habitual smokers applied during smoking and after 4, 8, and, 12 weeks of abstinence, and in addition, to test the effect of transdermal nicotine patch versus placebo.

A specialized wound-healing center concept: importance of a multidisciplinary department structure and surgical treatment facilities in the treatment of chronic wounds

Abstract: The optimal way to improve prophylaxis and treatment of patients with problem wounds is to create an independent multidisciplinary wound-healing center that focuses on all types of problem wounds and has an outpatient clinic, as well as an inpatient ward. An integrated wound-healing department concept should be a standard in wound healing. A department structure containing both an outpatient clinic and inpatient ward, employing full-time personnel, allows the development of all features vital for optimal wound treatment. These are standardized treatment plans, access to relevant objective investigative methods and surgical approaches, a higher degree of continuity in treatment, increased patient satisfaction, greater potential for education and training, and improved possibilities for basic and clinical research in healing and care. The Copenhagen Wound Healing Center, Copenhagen, Denmark, and the University Center of Wound Healing, Odense, Denmark, are examples of this type of department. Initial results have demonstrated that these concept centers have resulted in improved rates of healing in patients with leg ulcers and have decreased the necessity for major amputations. The structure of the centers also offers greater opportunities for both basic and clinical research and provides expert education for all types of health care personnel. The centers were created in an attempt to establish an expert function in wound healing that would be fully integrated into the Danish national health care system. This model may, with individual modifications, be applicable for both industrialized and developing countries. In case it is impossible to realize the model in its entirety, alternative center concepts should be considered.

Oxygen in wound healing and infection.

Abstract: It is a fundamental clinical observation that wounds do not heal in tissue that does not bleed, and they almost always heal in tissue that bleeds extensively. Continuous supply of oxygen to the tissue through microcirculation is vital for the healing process and for resistance to infection. Evaluation of tissue perfusion and oxygenation is important in all types of wound patients. Monitoring systems should measure the hemodynamic situation and the ability of the cardiovascular system to deliver an adequate volume of oxygen to meet the metabolic demands of the peripheral tissue. Oxygen therapy is important in relation to both healing and resistance to infections. External factors have been shown to significantly decrease the peripheral oxygen supply, and supplementary perioperative oxygen to reduce the surgical wound infection rate by one- half in patients undergoing colorectal resection. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy may be beneficial in situations where the nutritive flow and oxygen supply to the healing tissue are compromised by local injury, and particularly if anaerobic infection is present. However, the definitive proof for the effect and indications of this therapy in wound healing still has to be established. It can be concluded that adequate delivery of oxygen to the wound tissue is vital for optimal healing and resistance to infection. Assessment of perfusion and oxygenation is essential for the wound patient, as well as the treating personnel. The indication for hyperbaric oxygen treatment still needs to be defined. During wound healing the continuity and function of the damaged tissue are re-established. This is only possible through a restoration of the microcirculation and thereby the nutrition to the tissue. The main component of the nutrition is oxygen, which is critically important for healing a wound by production of granulation tissue and for ensuring resistance against infection. This has been shown experimentally, but recently a short period of supplementary oxygen has been shown to decrease wound complications in clinical practice as well.

Factors Affecting Wound Healing

Abstract: Wound healing, as a normal biological process in the human body, is achieved through four precisely and highly programmed phases: hemostasis, inflammation, proliferation, and remodeling For a wound to heal successfully, all four phases must occur in the proper sequence and time frame Many factors can interfere with one or more phases of this process, thus causing improper or impaired wound healing This article reviews the recent literature on the most significant factors that affect cutaneous wound healing and the potential cellular and/or molecular mechanisms involved The factors discussed include oxygenation, infection, age and sex hormones, stress, diabetes, obesity, medications, alcoholism, smoking, and nutrition A better understanding of the influence of these factors on repair may lead to therapeutics that improve wound healing and resolve impaired wounds

Human skin wounds: a major and snowballing threat to public health and the economy.

Abstract: In the United States, chronic wounds affect 6.5 million patients. An estimated excess of US$25 billion is spent annually on treatment of chronic wounds and the burden is rapidly growing due to increasing health care costs, an aging population and a sharp rise in the incidence of diabetes and obesity worldwide. The annual wound care products market is projected to reach $15.3 billion by 2010. Chronic wounds are rarely seen in individuals who are otherwise healthy. In fact, chronic wound patients frequently suffer from "highly branded" diseases such as diabetes and obesity. This seems to have overshadowed the significance of wounds per se as a major health problem. For example, NIH's Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tool (RePORT; http://report.nih.gov/), directed at providing access to estimates of funding for various disease conditions does list several rare diseases but does not list wounds. Forty million inpatient surgical procedures were performed in the United States in 2000, followed closely by 31.5 million outpatient surgeries. The need for post-surgical wound care is sharply on the rise. Emergency wound care in an acute setting has major significance not only in a war setting but also in homeland preparedness against natural disasters as well as against terrorism attacks. An additional burden of wound healing is the problem of skin scarring, a $12 billion annual market. The immense economic and social impact of wounds in our society calls for allocation of a higher level of attention and resources to understand biological mechanisms underlying cutaneous wound complications.

The WHO-5 Well-Being Index: a systematic review of the literature.

Abstract: Background: The 5-item World Health Organization Well-Being Index (WHO-5) is among the most widely used questionnaires assessing subjective psychological well-bei