When to Use MIST Therapy
Answer the following questions as part of your assessment to determine if your wound care patient would benefit from MIST Therapy®.
- Do you suspect your patient has a deep tissue injury (DTI)?
- Are your current treatment interventions painful to your patients?
- Have you seen improvement in healing over the last 14 days?
- Does the wound have adequate circulation?
- Does the wound show signs of infection?
- Does your wound have drainage?
Do you suspect your patient has a deep tissue injury (DTI)?
Deep tissue injury (DTI) is caused by significant pressure, usually over a bony prominence, that creates tissue damage from the inside out. Previously, clinicians were limited to offloading and waiting until the wound opened before starting treatment. MIST Deep Healing Energy penetrates below the skin’s surface to stimulate the cells to reduce inflammation, increase blood flow and and heal DTIs from deep within.
Are your current treatment interventions painful to your patients?
Pain is an unfortunate effect of many wound care treatments, including surgical debridement, contact ultrasound, pulsed lavage, electrical stimulation and more which can result in patient dissatisfaction and reduced compliance.
MIST Therapy is a painless therapy. The ultrasound waves are delivered through a fine saline MIST so the device does not come in contact with the wound. The patient just feels the cool, gentle mist of saline. In addition to being a painless treatment, four clinical studies have demonstrated a statistically significant reduction in wound pain after using MIST Therapy.* (14,24,25,27)
If pain is a factor when treating your wound care patient, it may be time to add MIST Therapy to your treatment protocol.
Have you seen improvement in healing over the last 14 days?
Wounds that have not shown healing within a14-day time period are considered “nonhealing” or “stalled”. There are many reasons wounds can stall, including poor nutrition, edema around the wound and more, but one of the most common is due to high levels of bacteria. Even a wound that appears healthy without signs of infection can have a large amount of bacteria slowing its healing rate.
In a recent study by Serena, et.al. Stage III pressure ulcers with no clinical signs of infection were cultured and found to have greater than 105 in bacteria. After only 6 treatments of MIST Therapy, the amount of bacteria in these same wounds was reduced by 50%. (23)
Bacterial cells are more rigid and susceptible to micromechanical stress. When treated with MIST Therapy, many bacterial membranes will fracture and the cell will die removing a common barrier to healing both at and below the wound surface.(22, 21, 22, 23)
If your patient has a wound that is not healing as expected, it may be time to add MIST Therapy to your treatment.
Does the wound have adequate circulation?
Wounds that have a significant amount of edema (i.e. venous leg ulcers) or any wound that is dull or cloudy pink in color may lack the amount of blood flow needed to heal the wound.
MIST Therapy has been shown to increase the blood flow to the wound by dilating the vessel. Animal studies have also demonstrated an angiogenic effect from MIST Therapy. But even MIST Therapy cannot provide the blood flow needed if the edema in a venous ulcer is not addressed. (17,26)
If you have a wound that lacks adequate circulation and the edema is being addressed, adding MIST Therapy to your treatment protocol may benefit your patient.
Does the wound show signs of infection?
Infection can often occur in nonhealing wounds. Symptoms include redness or swelling, pain or tenderness, discharge draining from the wound, fever and more. Standard antibiotic treatment isn’t always effective with these wound infections.
Bacterial cells are more rigid and susceptible to micromechanical stress. When treated with MIST Therapy, many bacterial membranes will fracture and the cell will die removing a common barrier to healing both at and below the wound surface.(22, 21, 22, 23)
MIST Therapy has been shown to reduce bacteria by 50% (over 6 treatments).23
If you have a wound that is showing signs of infection, it may be time to add MIST Therapy to your treatment.
Does your wound have drainage?
Nonhealing wounds can “stall” in the inflammatory or proliferative phases of healing. Drainage can result because of this inflammation or because the wound is infected.
Through active cell stimulation, MIST Therapy has been shown to reduce inflammation in nonhealing wounds for less drainage and faster healing. MIST Therapy also reduces the amount of bacteria within and below the wound bed to improve healing. (18)
If you have a wound that has drainage, it may be time to add MIST Therapy to your treatment.
For more information on when MIST Therapy is appropriate for your patient, contact your local Celleration representative or call 866-307-6478 (MIST).
*MIST Therapy is not approved for the reduction in pain. Further clinical study is required.