Preclinical Trials of Distant Non-invasive Electromagnetic Therapy Accelerating Burn Wounds Recovery in Model Animals

Introduction:The development of new approaches for local therapy and treatment of burns of varying depths remains a critical challenge in modern burn medicine. Purpose of the Preclinical Study:To evaluate the efficacy of weak, pulsed, non-ionizing, non-thermal electromagnetic fields (EMFs) applied through non-invasive electromagnetic therapy in accelerating the healing of burn wounds in a rabbit model. Materials and Methods:A non-randomized preclinical study was conducted at the educational vivarium of the Far Eastern State Agrarian University (Russia) using 24 rabbits (average age: 1.5 years; weight: 3.2 kg), divided equally into two groups.The control group received only 0.9% NaCl wound irrigation.The experimental group was exposed to non-invasive EMF therapy at a distance of 12 meters from the device, in addition to standard NaCl treatment.The total study duration was 30 days. Results:The experimental group demonstrated significantly faster wound healing compared to the control.By day 21, the average wound area in the EMF-treated animals was reduced to approximately 1 cm, accompanied by extensive granulation tissue formation.Burn wounds were initially inoculated with a monoculture of Staphylococcus epidermidis (10 CFU/mL), and while similar bacterial growth was observed in both groups initially, pathogenic flora such as E. coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Proteus spp.were absent from the wounds of the EMF-treated group by the end of the study.Rabbits in the control group exhibited signs of sepsis and multiple organ failure, and all died between days 8-10.In contrast, all animals in the experimental group survived the full study period.Necropsy confirmed acute sepsis in the control group, whereas signs of endotoxemia were observed in a few experimental animals. Conclusion:The application of non-invasive EMF therapy significantly accelerated burn wound healing in the rabbit model and demonstrated a systemic immunostimulatory effect, resulting in complete survival of animals in the treatment group.