Assessment of wound contraction, re-epithelialization and histological changes in full thickness excision wounds of rats treated with different concentrations of hydrogen peroxide

• Published in: Tropical journal of pharmaceutical research 2022-02, Vol.20 (8), p.1623-1629
• Main Authors: Udegbunam, Sunday O., Ogbobe, Sunday, Okereke, Nnamdi H., Enejere, Adaobi S., Udegbunam, Ijeoma R., Ezeobialu, Toochukwu H.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 1596-5996; 1596-9827
• DOI: 10.4314/tjpr.v20i8.11

Purpose: To investigate the impact of treatment with different strengths of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) on healing of excision-type wounds in rats. Methods: Thirty-two (n = 8) adult wistar rats randomly assigned to four groups A - D were used for the study. Full-thickness excision-type wound was surgically made on each rat on day 0. While wounds in group A, the control, were treated with 0.9 % normal saline, wounds in groups B - D received 1, 3, and 5 % H2O2, respectively. Following the surgical wounding and treatment, the epithelialization time, wound contraction, and histological changes of the wounds were assessed. Results: On day 21, animals in group C recorded 100% wound contraction, whereas in groups A, B and D the contraction degrees of 68.75, 79.33 and 79.00 %, respectively, were reported on the same day. Group C animals treated with 3 % of H2O2 had significantly (p < 0.05) higher degree of wound contraction and epithelialization. Histologically, by day 14, wounds of animals in group C presented with a preponderance of fibrocytes over fibroblasts spread across organized connective tissue fibres. Group C treated animals also had significantly (p