RESUMO
Patients with diabetes have an impaired wound healing process that contributes to the pathophysiology that may lead to amputation. In this case study, an extensive (103.49 cm2) full-thickness cutaneous wound with exposure of a necrotic Achilles' tendon in a patient with diabetes, neuropathy, and infrapopliteal vascular disease of the lower limbs was healed using a two-stage autologous skin substitute technique. The scaffolds on which the autologous fibroblasts and keratinocytes were grown comprised an ester derivative of hyaluronic acid. Two applications of the cultured autologous fibroblasts and one of the cultured autologous keratinocytes were placed on the wound at 7-day intervals. The ulcer healed completely 60 days following the first fibroblast graft application. After 16 months of follow-up, no recurrence was noted and the patient can walk without ancillary support. This novel tissue engineering technique is a promising treatment for wound healing.
