More skin donors needed, says surgeon

‘With a skin cover, healing and survival rate of patient with severe burns improves by 50%’

“People say beauty is skin deep, but, in fact, life is skin deep,” said A Mohammed Imran Khan, Plastic and Reconstructive surgeon at Burns Centre, Grace Kennett Foundationm

Speaking to The Hindu on the importance of skin donation, he said 70 lakh cases of burns are reported every year in India, out of which 1.4 lakh people die. With a skin cover, the healing and survival rate of a patient with severe burns improves by 50%.

There are 12 established skin banks in India. “In south Tamil Nadu, we are the first to perform allograft through our skin bank,” he said.

All the four cases of severe burns have been treated with a 90% success rate within eight months of active functioning of skin bank in the hospital.

Grafting of skin is of three types - autograft is where the patient’s own skin is used. Homograft is where the patient’s immediate family or genetic resemblance skin is used. Lastly, allograft is where skin is taken from the same species, eg., from human to human.

Three third degree burn patients who underwent surgery and were covered with allograft recovered within three weeks. Patients suffering from deeper burns or third degree burns will be best benefitted by skin grafting.

In one case, hot oil spilled on a two-year-old child. “Deeper burns involving 15% of the boy’s body surface were treated with removal of dead skin through surgery and covering the wound with skin bank allograft. Within three weeks, the boy recovered.” he said.