A Composite Application Technique of Single-stage Dermal Templates to Improve Handling and Ease of Use

The "work horse" for the treatment of full-thickness defects of any etiology, including chronic nonhealing wounds and traumatic injuries, is generally autologous split-thickness skin grafts (STSGs), meshed, hand-fenestrated, or a sheet graft. Advancements in skin tissue engineering have allowed for the integration of dermal substitutes to be combined with autologous STSGs, adding valuable options for restoring the skin's complex multilayered structure. Although dermal templates offer a promising avenue for more nuanced reconstruction in certain cases, their application is not without challenges, particularly when they are made from delicate materials. The following technique simplifies the application technique of single-stage dermal templates by using a composite approach. To demonstrate this technique, MatriDerm, a 1-mm-thick bovine collagen-elastin dermal template, is used to enable an STSG to be applied in a one-stage procedure.