A skin graft is a segment of epidermis and dermis that is completely removed from the body and transferred to a recipient site. Skin grafts are separated from all vascular and nervous supply when implanted — essentially a dead piece of skin. Skin graft survival at the recipient site depends on the re-establishment of vascular supply through engraftment or ‘take’ — essentially the process in which a dead piece of skin comes back to life.
Skin grafts can be classified according to their source as follows: (1) autografts (autogenous grafts), in which the donor and recipient sites are on the same animal; (2) allografts (homografts)—in this case, the donor and recipient sites are on genetically different individuals of the same species; (3) xenografts (heterografts) in which the donor and recipient sites are on animals of different species; and (4) isografts, a graft between identical twins or between F1 hybrids produced by crossing inbred strains.
Grafts are also classified according to thickness and may consist of either the full thickness of the skin, which is composed of epidermis and the entire dermis, or a split thickness of skin, which is composed of epidermis and varying partial thicknesses of the dermis.
Skin grafts are indicated when there has been major loss of skin from trauma or other factors, such as tumour removal. In dogs and cats, skin grafting is primarily indicated for loss of skin on the distal limbs, where the paucity of loose skin precludes wound closure via skin mobilisation or construction of local flaps.
How will light therapy help to speed up healing of skin graft sites?
Photizo Vetcare’s healing power helps to:
- Stimulate the production of collagen. Collagen is an essential protein used to repair damaged tissue. It is the most common protein found in the body.
- Increase circulation. By helping to generate an increase in blood flow to the treatment areas the light therapy normalises and heals injured cells. By increasing blood flow more oxygen and nutrients are transported to the affected area, and waste products taken away.
- Reduce oedema (swelling). Oedema has two components, liquid and protein. Researchers have shown that the lymph diameter and the flow of the lymph system can be nearly doubled with the use of light therapy.
- Stimulate the release of endorphins which are the body’s own pain-fighting
