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. 2025 Apr 14;6(2):20.
doi: 10.3390/ebj6020020.

Pediatric Burn Treatment with Non-Thermal Atmospheric Plasma and Epifast®: Clinical Results

Pablo Rodríguez-Ferreyra  1 , Régulo López-Callejas  2 , Teresa Narváez-Robles  1 , Benjamín Gonzalo Rodríguez-Méndez  2 , Omar Israel Gayosso-Cerón  1 , Antonio Mercado-Cabrera  2 , Irene Lule-Reyna  1 , Othoniel Mondragón-Dagio  1 , Raúl Valencia-Alvarado  2 , Jesús Duarte-Mote  3
Affiliations

Pediatric Burn Treatment with Non-Thermal Atmospheric Plasma and Epifast®: Clinical Results

Pablo Rodríguez-Ferreyra et al. Eur Burn J. .

Abstract

The effective treatment of severe burns in pediatric patients is essential for minimizing complications and promoting optimal recovery. This study investigates the use of non-thermal atmospheric pressure plasma (NTAPP) as an adjuvant therapy in combination with Epifast® for the experimental group, compared to standard care involving early excisions and Epifast® for the control group. A randomized controlled trial was conducted with 40 pediatric patients suffering from superficial partial-thickness and deep dermal burns. The experimental group that received NTAPP daily demonstrated a significant reduction in the need for skin grafts, requiring only 10% compared to 40% in the control group (p = 0.02). Although there were no statistically significant differences in the length of hospital stay, the experimental group showed a trend toward shorter stays (9.85 days vs. 11.65 days; p = 0.38) and lower analgesic consumption (13.01 doses vs. 21.15 doses; p = 0.09). Additionally, the infection rate in the NTAPP-treated group was significantly lower at 25%, compared to 37.95% in the control group (p < 0.05). These findings suggest that NTAPP enhances wound healing while reducing surgical morbidity and the risk of infections. In conclusion, this study highlights the transformative potential of NTAPP as an innovative strategy in pediatric burn management. It combines clinical efficacy with a less invasive approach, representing a significant advance in regenerative medicine and opening new avenues for research into advanced therapies.

Keywords: biomedical devices; deep dermal burn; graft application; healing; non-thermal atmospheric pressure plasma; superficial partial-thickness burn; wounds.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest, and the funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript; or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Scheme of the group selection procedure.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Schematic of the NTAPP generator.
Figure 3
Figure 3
NTAPP spectrum.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Parameters of the NTAPP in the experimental group: (a) distribution of irradiance applied to patients; (b) distribution of NTAPP application time per patient. The blank square represents the mean value. In (a), the diamonds represent the irradiance for each patient, and in (b), the application time for each patient.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Clinical evolution of the patient after treatment with NTAPP for superficial partial-thickness burns. (a,b) show the state of the wound immediately after cleaning and applying the NTAPP treatment; (c,d) show the application of Epifast® to the affected regions; (e,f) illustrate the evolution of the tissue three days after treatment, showing an improvement in the appearance and characteristics of the wound; (g) presents the result ten days after treatment, where a notable tissue regeneration and a significant reduction in inflammation can be observed.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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