13 October 2009
Sheffield Professor´s research could save NHS millions
A study led by a Sheffield Professor could save the NHS millions a year - by proving that treating leg ulcers with inexpensive dressings works just as well as the widely used expensive alternatives.
Researchers, led by Professor Jonathan Michaels from the University of Sheffield´s School of Health and Related Research (ScHARR) and Sheffield Vascular Institute at the Northern General Hospital, studied 213 leg ulcer patients who received either standard low-adhesive dressings or `antimicrobial silver-donating´ dressings.
The study, published in the October issue of British Journal of Surgery (BJS), showed no significant differences between the two groups when it came to healing rates and quality of life, but the average cost of treating a patient with silver dressings was 30 per cent higher than the alternative.
Jonathan Michaels, Professor of Vascular Surgery at the University and Honorary Consultant at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals, said: "Latest figures from the National Prescribing Centre suggest that wound dressings cost the NHS £100 million in 2006-7, excluding staff time, and that silver dressings accounted for a quarter of this cost. However, until now, no studies have been published examining the cost-effectiveness of using antimicrobial silver-donating dressings beneath compression therapy to treat venous leg ulcers."
Venous leg ulcers are relatively common in older people and, as the population ages, the costs of caring for them increases. Multi-layer compression bandaging is now the standard treatment for venous leg ulcers, with dressings placed over the actual wound to promote healing.
Professor Michaels explained: "A great variety of different dressings are used, but quality evidence for the benefits of specific dressings is sparse and systematic reviews have shown no statistically significant difference in the number of ulcers healed between any of the dressing types."
The VULCAN study, funded by the NIHR Health Technology Assessment programme, was carried out over a two-and-a-half year period on patients who had had active ulceration of their lower leg for more than six weeks. Notes for Editors: Patients were recruited from South Yorkshire and Devon, mainly from primary care clinics specialising in leg ulcers.
The Sheffield Vascular Institute is one of the largest Academic Vascular Units in the UK. The Institute has clinical facilities based at the Northern General Hospital site in Sheffield providing specialist vascular services to the population of Sheffield and many of the surrounding districts including Barnsley and Rotherham. Much research takes place within the clinical unit and is allied to the Academic Vascular Unit.
The average cost of silver dressing is £417.97, including staff time and materials; the average cost for the alternative is £320.12.
For further information please contact: Lauren Anderson, Media Relations Officer, on 0114 2221046 or email l.h.anderson@sheffield.ac.uk or Laura Kirby, Communications Officer at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust - on 0114 2261363 or email laura.kirby@sth.nhs.uk
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