Blue Light for Donor Site Healing in Burn Patients

Background: The donor site (DS) in patients with severe burns is often associated with complications that may delay healing and negatively affect clinical outcomes. Impaired re-epithelialization, pain, inflammation, and risk of infection represent relevant challenges in burn care. Blue light (BL) photobiomodulation has demonstrated beneficial effects in different types of skin lesions, including modulation of inflammation and stimulation of tissue repair. Therefore, BL therapy may represent an innovative and non-invasive strategy to enhance DS healing and improve overall recovery. Methods: This protocol describes an interventional, controlled, prospective, single-center, post-market clinical study enrolling 25 patients with intermediate and deep burn injuries. A CE-marked device emitting BL will be used. Each participant will receive both treatments through an intra-patient controlled design: one DS area will be treated with Standard of Care (SoC) alone, while a second DS will receive SoC combined with BL therapy. This approach allows direct comparison of clinical outcomes within the same patient, minimizing inter-individual variability. The primary outcome is the comparison of DS healing time between areas treated with BL plus SoC and those treated with SoC alone. Secondary outcomes include assessment of wound bed characteristics using the Wound Bed Score (WBS), evaluation of pain intensity during the healing process through the Numeric Pain Rating Scale (NRS), and identification of clinical signs of infection by performing skin swabs on both treated and untreated areas. Safety will be assessed by monitoring local adverse reactions related to BL exposure, such as erythema, burning sensation, heat perception, skin irritation, or pruritus. Long-term scar quality will be evaluated at 1 and 3 months after complete healing using the Vancouver Scar Scale (VSS), allowing comparison of aesthetic and functional outcomes between the two treatment approaches. Follow-up visits at 1 and 3 months will also enable detection of late adverse events and confirmation of the persistence of therapeutic effects. Discussion/Conclusion: BL photobiomodulation appears to be a promising and well-tolerated adjunctive therapy for DS management in burn patients. This study aims to generate clinical evidence supporting its effectiveness and potential integration into routine burn care practice.