Here is a report from George Galliwango about how the surgeons are using the new equipment:
Zimmer Air Dermatome
As of today, 22nd Feb 2014, we have used the dermatome on three (3) occasions.
Use of the dermatome was carefully selected depending on the large size of graft needed in single sheets; consistent thickness graft; and hard to graft areas.
Case 1:
Large sheets of good quality skin graft were needed to cover the large defect following the release of a severe neck post – burn contracture in an adult patient. He has since been discharged with good graft take and result.
Case 2:
Again, large sheets of graft were required to cover over a free Lattismus Dorsi flap which we used to cover a large complex leg wound with exposed leg bones. The dermatome was employed to harvest large and long sheets of grafts; these were then meshed, (using the donated Zimmer Mesh graft II system donated by Interface Uganda) to further expand the grafts.
The large area coverage achieved by the well harvested and subsequently meshed grafts would not have been achieved by more traditional method using Humby knife and “by hand meshing”.
Case 3:
During a case of one stage total ear reconstruction, a graft of consistent thickness was harvested from the scalp using the dermatome. It would otherwise be difficult to harvest a good quality graft from the scalp with traditional methods.
These results in these cases and many more in the future would not be possible or achievable without the precise Zimmer Air dermatome and Zimmer Meshgraft II system. CORSU greatly appreciates the kind donation.