COVID-19 personal protective equipment causes serious skin injuries

New Rochelle, NY, April 30, 2020–A new study of medical staff treating COVID-19-infected patients found 42.8% experienced serious skin injury related to the use of personal protective equipment (PPE), including masks, goggles, face shields, and protective gowns. Researchers concluded that the skin injuries put staff at increased risk of infection, with insufficient prevention and treatment measures in place, according to the study published in Advances in Wound Care, a monthly peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. Click here to read the full-text article free on the Advances in Wound Care website through May 30, 2020.

The article entitled “The Prevalence, Characteristics and Prevention Status of Skin Injury Caused by Personal Protective Equipment Among Medical Staff in Fighting COVID-19: A Multi-Center, Cross-Sectional Study” was coauthored by Qixia Jiang, Nanjing University School of Medicine (Nanjing, China) and a large team of Chinese clinicians. The researchers identified three main types of PPE-related skin injuries: device-related pressure injuries; moist associated skin damage; skin tear. Several factors increased the risk for skin injury: heavy sweating, greater daily wearing time, being male, and using grade 3 versus grade 2 PPE.

“These significant findings are consistent with independent observations in Europe and United States, and call for systematic studies addressing skin injury and repair in COVID-19+ patients as well as in their healthcare providers,” says Editor-in-Chief Chandan K. Sen, PhD, Distinguished Professor at the Indiana University School of Medicine and Executive Director of Indiana University Health Comprehensive Wound Center, Indianapolis, IN.

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About the Journal

Advances in Wound Care is a monthly peer-reviewed journal published online and in print that reports the latest scientific discoveries, translational research, and clinical developments in acute and chronic wound care. Each issue provides a digest of the latest research findings, innovative wound care strategies, industry product pipeline, and developments in biomaterials and skin and tissue regeneration to optimize patient outcomes. The broad scope of applications covered includes limb salvage, chronic ulcers, burns, trauma, blast injuries, surgical repair, skin bioengineering, dressings, anti-scar strategies, diabetic ulcers, ostomy, bedsores, biofilms, and military wound care. Complete tables of content and a sample issue may be viewed on the Advances in Wound Care website.

About the Publisher

Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including Tissue Engineering, Antioxidants & Redox Signaling, and Surgical Infections. Its biotechnology trade magazine, GEN (Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology), was the first in its field and is today the industry’s most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm’s 90 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available at the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website.