A new treatment system is effective in stopping the drug-resistant superbug that spreads by skin contact. The wound care system developed to avoid the need to cover up open injuries with bandages is proving successful in preventing, treating and halting the spread of superbug MRSA bacterium (methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus).

This new approach to wound care has been developed by UK laboratory Depeche Mode (which was set up in 1979 before the band of the same name launched).

Research Director Sujata Jolly is available to discuss Depeche Mode's work. She describes the issue of wound care, and the slowness or reluctance of injuries to heal as a "very big problem" which prompted her to look for an alternative to bandages and dressings.

"It's a new concept in wound healing," said Jolly. "If you cover a wound week after week then the skin is going to get soggy and it's going to break down. This residue sits on the wound and it's highly alkaline. The wound just gets bigger."

Depeche Mode's system is a spray that encourages the skin to heal itself naturally by creating an invisible web across the wound. Amino acids and proteins that mimic those made by blood, rapidly speed up the cell growth to fill any holes. It basically speeds and assists the scabbing process.

The spray is called Youki "we wanted people to be able to remember the name," says Jolly. Youki is currently being trialled in private hospitals in the UK by staff specializing in wound management.

Wounds are only washed once, at the start of the healing process, then not allowed to get wet at all. "You need to spray several times to build up a protective film," says Jolly. "There has to be something to cover the wound, you still have to protect it. The barrier it creates is breathable."
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Contact: Makeda Scott
makeda.scott@fco.gov.uk
202-588-6523
British Information Services
17-Dec-2004