Corning Incorporated
Vacuum assisted wound closure assembly and methods of irradiating a wound using the same

Abstract:

A method of irradiating a wound that includes positioning a wound insertion foam within a wound cavity of a wound and covering the wound insertion foam using a wound sealing layer. The method further includes pumping fluid from the wound cavity using a drain tube sealed within the wound cavity and coupled to a vacuum source, and irradiating the wound using a light diffusing optical fiber that is optically coupled to a therapeutic light source and includes light scattering structures distributed along the light diffusing optical fiber. A portion of the light diffusing optical fiber is positioned within a wound tissue region of the wound, the wound cavity, or both, such that light emitted by the therapeutic light source enters the light diffusing optical fiber, scatters outward from the light diffusing optical fiber, and irradiates the wound tissue region, a wound cavity surface of the wound, or both.