Impact of topical nifedipine on wound healing in animal model (pig)

BACKGROUND: The human skin is an extremely sophisticated and evolved organ that covers the whole body. External agents or the patient’s own diseases can cause skin injuries that can challenge healthcare professionals and impose high social, economic and emotional costs. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the impact of topical nifedipine on skin wound healing, specifically on polymorphonuclear cells, vascular proliferation, and collagen. METHODS: We used three pigs, and created eight injuries in the dorsal region of each animal. We applied 1%, 10%, and 20% concentration nifedipine creams to four of the wounds in animals 1, 2, and 3 respectively and treated the other twelve wounds with saline solution 0.9% only. We analyzed the presence of polymorphonuclear cells, vascular proliferation, and collagen at six different times (days 1, 3, 7, 14, 21, and 28). RESULTS: The evaluation of polymorphonuclear levels showed mild cell activity at all times in the control group, while in the nifedipine groups, marked levels were more frequent at all times during the experiment. There was a 4.84-fold increase in the chance of marked vascular proliferation (p = 0.019) and, at the same time, a decrease in collagen formation (OR 0.02 / p = 0.005) in animal 3. CONCLUSIONS: Topical NFD may have an impact on skin wound healing mechanisms. Our study showed that polymorphonuclear cells and vascular proliferation increased. We also demonstrated that collagen formation decreased. Therefore, topical NFD may have a positive impact on skin wound healing. Additional studies are needed to confirm our results.