Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37726738›Full record

Trial reportBMC medicine2023

Larval therapy vs conventional silver dressings for full-thickness burns: a randomized controlled trial.

Jasem Gaffari, Kamran Akbarzadeh, Mozhgan Baniardalani, Reza Hosseini, Safdar Masoumi, Zahra Sadat Amiri, Razieh Shabani Kordshouli, Javad Rafinejad, Mostafa Dahmardehei

Open access · goldAbstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
In one paragraph

Trial report in BMC medicine, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed
1.9field-weighted citation impact, top 13% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed, 9 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. What's New in Wound Healing: Treatment Advances and Microbial Insights.American journal of clinical dermatology · 2025
    Review
  2. Review
  3. Article
  4. An Overview of Recent Developments in the Management of Burn Injuries.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023
    Review
  5. Article
  6. Burn Debridment - Approach and Review.Current health sciences journal
    Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.

Jasem GaffariDepartment of Medical Entomology and Vector Control, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Kamran Akbarzadeh *Department of Medical Entomology and Vector Control, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Mozhgan Baniardalani *Department of Medical Entomology and Vector Control, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Reza Hosseini *Cancer Research Center, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Safdar MasoumiDepartment of Biostatistics, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modarres University, Tehran, Iran.
Zahra Sadat AmiriDepartment of Medical Entomology and Vector Control, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Razieh Shabani KordshouliDepartment of Medical Entomology and Vector Control, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Javad RafinejadDepartment of Medical Entomology and Vector Control, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. jrafinejad@gmail.com.
Mostafa DahmardeheiBurn Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. m.dahmardehei@gmail.com.
Tehran University of Medical Sciences · IRIran University of Medical Sciences · IRShahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences · IRTarbiat Modares University · IR

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThis is the first clinical trial to investigate the effectiveness of maggot debridement therapy (MDT) for full-thickness burn injuries in comparison to conventional silver dressings.

methodsThirty-one cases with full-thickness (grade III based on ICD-10 classifications version 2019) burns were assigned into larval therapy (15 cases) and conventional treatment (16 cases) groups. Participants in the MDT group have received loose larvae on days 0, 2, 4, and 6, while controls received a conventional regimen comprised of sharp debridement, silver sulfadiazine, antibiotic therapy, and offloading every day. The primary and secondary outcomes were defined as the time to debridement (from admission to skin autograft) and time to healing (from admission to complete healing post-skin autograft). Patients in two groups were also compared in terms of necrosis resolution, granulation, and granulation/necrosis (g/n) ratio during study time periods.

resultsParticipants who received larvae had significantly decreased necrosis on days 2 (p = 0.028) and 4 (p = 0.023) compared to those who received control treatment. Significant differences (p < 0.001) were also observed for granulation between the two groups in favor of MDT and the fold changes of g/n in the larvae group were 5, 15, and 13 times higher than that for the conventional regimen on days 2, 4, and 6 of treatment, respectively. Strikingly, a subgroup analysis of high necrotic burns (necrosis > 50%) revealed a significant improvement (p < 0.001) for MDT compared to the control treatment. There were also significant differences (p < 0.001) for the time to debridement and time to healing between the two groups. However, bacterial contamination did not show significant changes between the two treatment regimens.

conclusionsOur findings revealed that MDT has a favorable superiority over conventional regimen for the treatment of grade-III burns, and thus further clinical trials with larger sample size are warranted to confirm these results.

Indexed as

BurnsSilverAnimalsBandagesHumansLarvaNecrosisSilverBurnInfectionLarvaeMaggot therapySilver dressings

Identifiers

PMID37726738
PMCPMC10510148
OpenAlexW4386857428

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.