Antimicrobial spray may reduce wound pain during healing better than traditional dressings.

Antimicrobial spray may be more useful than traditional dressings in reducing wound pain during healing, a new study has found.

Researchers monitored wound healing in patients undergoing skin grafts. One group had their skin donor sites treated with antimicrobial spray containing quaternary ammonium salts, which have antibacterial properties. 

After being applied to the wound, the antimicrobial spray solidified into a clear protective layer. A clear polyurethane film was placed over the wound and replaced every two to three days as required.

The control group was treated using traditional wound dressings.

Researchers found that those treated with the spray had lower pain scores throughout healing. The spray also allowed for a clear view of the wound’s progress.

Wounds in both groups healed in about 15 days with no visible differences.

“The antimicrobial spray is an ideal wound dressing, because it could effectively reduce pain while being suitable for wounds in areas difficult to fit with a conventional dressing,” wrote lead researcher Lien-Guo Dai, M.D., Ph.D., of Taipei Medical University. 

Unlike other chemical wound treatments antimicrobial sprays do not produce bacterial resistance, according to the study’s authors. 

The full results of the study were published in Wounds