Browsing by Author "Tarraf, Samar Andrea"

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    Studies of Structural and Mechanical Properties of Skin and Treated Split Thickness Skin Autografts
    (2018-09-06) Tarraf, Samar Andrea; Di Martino, Elena S.; Biernaskie, Jeff A.; Duncan, Neil A.; Matyas, John Robert
    Split-thickness skin autografts (STSGs) are the gold standard treatment for full thickness burn wounds. Healthy skin from the patient is harvested and transplanted onto the wound. The graft, comprised of epidermis and superficial dermis, is missing cellular components adversely affecting functionality. One major contributor to reduced functionality is decreased elasticity. Understanding the biomechanical properties of grafts can help assess the efficacy of treatments. We hypothesize that combining STSGs with dermal stem cells could stimulate tissue remodeling, generation of neodermis and improve functionality. Coupling mechanics with microscopy assays gives a more encompassing understanding of the changes in mechanical properties. This study provides an initial comparison between skin tissue types and between graft treatments. We established differences between healthy and grafted skin and showed shortcomings of the xenograft model used. We also demonstrated the effects of graft treatment on mechanical response. Treatment cannot fully recover healthy skin behavior, but improves graft functionality.