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Meta-Analysis
. 2023 Apr;20(4):1235-1252.
doi: 10.1111/iwj.13941. Epub 2022 Sep 3.

Liquid ozone therapies for the treatment of epithelial wounds: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Daniel J Romary  1 , Sarah A Landsberger  1 , K Nicole Bradner  2 , Mirian Ramirez  1 , Brian R Leon  1
Affiliations
Meta-Analysis

Liquid ozone therapies for the treatment of epithelial wounds: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Daniel J Romary et al. Int Wound J. 2023 Apr.

Abstract

Ozonated water and ozonated oils are emerging as potential therapies for wound care, but their efficacy has not been appropriately evaluated. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to evaluate the therapeutic potential of topical ozone in the treatment of mammalian wounds. A structured search of five scientific databases returned a total of 390 unique studies. Of these, 22 studies were included in this review. Four studies provided enough data to be included in a meta-analysis evaluating the time to complete wound healing. All studies were randomised controlled trials of humans or other mammalian animals that reported clinical signs of wound healing. Each study was critically analysed by a six-point assessment of the risk of bias. Wounds treated with topical ozone had a greater reduction in wound size than similar wounds treated with controls or standard of care in all studies. Those treated with ozonated liquids also had a shorter time to wound healing by approximately one week. In conclusion, topical ozone contributed to enhanced wound healing in all studies. While additional human experiments would be helpful to quantify ozone's specific effects on wound healing compared to standard treatment, topical ozone should be considered as part of an overall wound management strategy.

Keywords: dermatologic agent; efficacy; ozone; topical administration; wound healing.

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Conflict of interest statement

Daniel J. Romary, Sarah A. Landsberger, K. Nicole Bradner, and Brian R. Leon were compensated through an unrestricted grant from 3Oe Scientific, Inc. BRL also serves on the medical advisory board of and holds equity in 3Oe Scientific, Inc.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
PRISMA diagram for study selection
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Forest plot describing meta‐analysis of time‐to‐wound‐healing
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
Funnel plot evaluating publication bias of studies included in meta‐analysis
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 4
Risk of bias, assessed as low (L), high (H), or unclear (−)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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