Disruption Of The Skin Essay

The skin is the largest organ of the body, covering about 1.7 m2 and comprising approximately 10% of the total body mass of an average human being. The primary function of the skin is to provide a barrier between the body and the external environment. This barrier protects against a range of noxious assaults like UV radiation, mechanical, chemical and biological insults like allergens and microorganisms. Its physical strength and elasticity provide optimal mechanical support; semi-permeability to allow effective exchange of gases and moisture; removal of waste materials and prevention of fluid and electrolytes loss; and act as an important periphery sensing organ through its receptors in touch with the environment sensing stimulation in the

All these factors together are very important; furthermore, large skin damage can cause mortality. The mortality rate from burns has declined in the past decade; however, it is still high if more than 70% of the body surface is injured or burned. These wounds can be temporarily covered by dressing material in order to restrict bacterial infestation, mechanical shear, and excess moisture loss. For near total full thickness injuries, where defect size extends beyond ̴ 80% of total boby surface area ( TBSA), donor sites almost become unavailable thereby leaving no scope for even meshing technique. The major problem is limited availability of donor sites for grafting and the long time it takes to cover the burned area completely with the patient’s own skin; during this period the patient is at risk from sepsis. The wounds fail to heal without any graft and often become fatal. Development of a laboratory skin analogue readily available for grafting at wound site can be beneficial and may provide superior functional outcomes (Pearson AS et al., 2000, O’Connor NE et al., 1981 & Gina C Ang.,