Modified Meek Micrografting Technique for Wound Coverage in Extensive Burn Injuries.

Medina, Abelardo; Riegel, Timothy; Nystad, Deborah; Tredget, Edward E

The modified Meek micrografting technique constitutes a rapid and efficient surgical approach for the skin coverage of extensive full-thickness burn injuries. A total of 10 burn patients (mean 68 ± 9.2% TBSA) admitted to our burn unit required one or more Meek micrografting procedures (mean 2.2 ± 0.5) to cover in average 43.4 ± 11.6% TBSA (range between 10 and 75% TBSA). This goal was achieved using a donor site area ranging between 2.5 and 18% TBSA. All patients developed local infection to Pseudomona aeruginosa (75%), Stenotrophomona maltophilia (25%), methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (12.5%), and Acinetobacter baumannii (12.5%). Thus, the average of Meek regrafting after graft-take failure was 13.1 ± 6.4% TBSA (median: 9%; range from 0 to 36%). The period to obtain stable definitive wound closure was in average of 67.2 ± 21 days post injury. The modified Meek micrografting provides a reliable and versatile method for the coverage of large burn wounds with limited autograft donor sites and is now routinely used in our institution. Its systematic use improves operating times and overall outcomes reducing the number of surgeries, increasing the percentage of graft take, and decreasing the length of stay.