EFFICACY OF CONTRACTUBEX(R) GEL IN THE TREATMENT OF FRESH SCARS AFTERTHORACIC-SURGERY IN CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS

Scar development was investigated in 45 young patients who had undergo ne thoracic surgery. Patients were randomly assigned either to a group which was treated topically with Contractubex(R) gel (Merz + Co., D-F rankfurt/Main), containing 10% onion extract 50/U of sodium heparin pe r one g of gel and 1% allantoin, or to a group receiving no treatment. The treatment began on average 26 days after the operation and was co ntinued for one year. The scars of ail treated and untreated patients were evaluated at monthly intervals. The appearance of the scar, inclu ding scar type and scar size as well as scar colour, was assessed by t he physician. A reduction of the increase of scar width was seen in th e Contractubex(R)-treated group as compared with the untreated group. Further, physiological scars and skin-coloured scars were more frequen t in the treated group than in the untreated group. Hypertrophic or ke loidal scars were less frequent in the treated group. No differences i n scar length and scar height were seen. At the end of the observation period, the clinical course of scar development was rated as ''very g ood'' or ''good'' in more than 90% of the treated patients, ''good'' i n less than 40%, and ''moderate'' or ''bad'' in more than 60% of the u ntreated cases. The tolerability of the drug was ''good'' or ''very go od'' in all cases. In conclusion, Contractubex(R) gel is useful in sca r treatment after thoracic surgery.