Summary

Diabetic ulcers significantly impact patients’ quality of life, morbidity, and mortality, necessitating effective treatment strategies. Standard care involves wound debridement and antiseptic dressings. A recent study explored the effectiveness of SilverStream Solution—an innovative antiseptic containing silver ions, menthol, glycerol, and a surfactant—compared to traditional povidone iodine in promoting diabetic ulcer healing.

Study Overview

The study included 100 patients with diabetic ulcers, randomly divided into two groups:

• Group A: Treated with SilverStream Solution dressings every 48 hours.
• Group B: Treated with Povidone Iodine dressings every 48 hours.

Ulcer healing and size reduction were assessed bi-weekly over an 8-week period or until complete healing.

Key Findings

1. Healing Efficacy:
   • Group A (SilverStream): Achieved a significant reduction in mean ulcer size (89.51%).
   • Group B (Povidone Iodine): Recorded a lower reduction in mean ulcer size (33%).
2. Patient Response Rates:
   • SilverStream: All patients showed improvement, with 90% achieving complete healing. Partial responses were observed in 10% of patients with poor glycemic control.
   • Povidone Iodine: Only 46% of patients achieved complete healing, 42% had partial responses, and 12% showed no response.

Conclusion

Response rate with silver stream dressing is significantly higher and reduction in mean ulcer size at end of 8 weeks treatment is significantly more than with povidone iodine.