Kilpauk Med College Hospital famous for burns care, to get skin bank

The skin bank facility is one the government has been mulling over for several years now. The hospital is a leading centre for treatment of burns and sees a huge volume of patients every day and a majority of them come with over 50 per cent burns. Dr Narayan Babu, dean, Kilpauk Medical College said, “We get at least two cases of 100 per cent burns and several others with varying degrees every day. 

Since it is a referral centre, we also get a high number of patients from other states, apart from those within the city. This will be a big boost for them,” he said. Currently, the hospital sources donated skin from other hospitals. A bone bank will also come up at the facility. 

TRANSTAN, which has been working since 2008 has established a robust structure for organ transplant and networking. With this move, skin along with bones would also be added to the pool for the benefit of donors. A source from the Health Department said that a skin bank will go a long way in saving burn victims. 

The source said, “TRANSTAN has been successfully running an organ transplant programme, and we are the only state to have a separate society for this and it is headed by the Chief Minister. Among other progressive steps, the next step is the skin bank. This bank would help many burn victims at the hospital.” 

Donated skin helps patients as they recover from burns that take a few weeks to heal. Dr G Balakrishnan, who is the brain behind establishing the first skin bank in the state at Right Hospital almost three years ago, said that donated skin can be stored for five years. “It can be utilised for those who have suffered from more than 40 per cent burns. The burnt area will be covered by a temporary skin, which has been harvested, till they recover.

Meanwhile, the temporary skin can help avoid pain, infection and unnecessary oozing of proteins from the body. Once the pain eases, and a portion of the burns heal, they will be fit for a surgery or will be able to undergo an auto graft,” he said. He added that such a bank at a government facility will benefit a wider group of people. “At the moment, the big challenge is lack of awareness over skin donation. We can work on it and it can be as successful as the campaign for eye donation,” he added.