British journal of community nursing
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After a burn injury, skin loses its protective properties, leaving the body open to a number of complications. The gold standard treatment for burn wounds is autologous skin grafting; however, this may not always be an option, due to insufficient amounts of donor skin. Wound dressings can be used as a primary treatment in those patients who are unsuitable for skin grafting. ⋯ There is currently no gold standard of burns dressing that is universally accepted. However, hydrogels have been shown to exhibit a great number of beneficial properties and are the most favourable for use in burns patients. We discuss the use of hydrogel dressings, including their properties and clinical application.