Discussion
When there are lesions in the skin, there is a high risk of infection and spread of opportunistic infectious agents in the wound, which can interfere with healing and cause systemic problems. This paper reports the use of a chlorine dioxide (CD) solution as part of the treatment of four clinical cases with various skin lesions.
The first case described, which consisted of a self-inflicted burn due to misuse of the DC, was resolved without complications with the correct use of the DC skin protocol. The patient had used a concentration of 1,500 ppm of CD, applied directly to the skin and kept it occluded with a plastic bandage, which allowed the CD, which is a gas, to exert the effect of oxidative stress with a marked keratolytic effect. However, when used without occlusion, DC protected the tissue from opportunistic infections and allowed dermal regeneration, evidencing the phenomenon of hormesis24.
In the second case, the F15 protocol for infections and the preventive C20 protocol was used systemically, to replace antibiotics with the main advantage of preventing the selection of populations of resistant microorganisms, currently considered one of the most pressing problems for public health19,25,26. Likewise, the dermal protocol and the ophthalmic protocol of CD were used with the addition of DMSO in the latter. Dimethyl sulfoxide is widely used in veterinary medicine and human medicine as a vehicle of other agents contained, and there is evidence that it has anti-inflammatory properties27–29. We suggest that its use increased the penetration of the CD by cell membranes, increasing the recovery rate due to ocular immune privilege, and that the ophthalmic application of CD had a specific antimicrobial effect30,31. It should be noted that the treatment included the use of Aloe vera, a plant with known anti-inflammatory properties that promote skin regeneration32,33. Also, the treatment included the topical application of mineral oil, that is thought to protect the skin of lacerations and dryness34,35. A future controlled study would allow to determine whether the resolution of the dermal lesion and the regeneration speed was due to the use of the CD+DMSO, to Aloe vera, to the topical oil, or to the three as a synergistic whole.
In terms of the ulceration due to venous insufficiency of the third clinical case, a double (local and systemic) intervention was required to treat the failure of blood vessels and skin ulceration. Since venotonic and vasoprotective agent have no antiseptic effect, the topical and systemic CD application was the only agent to which an antiseptic and antimicrobial effect can be attributed. Likewise, anti-inflammatory properties are attributed to the addition of systemic DMSO 27–29. In this case, treatment was complemented with clinophylite zeolite, for which an antioxidant effect has been reported, one that impacts the adsorption capacity of microorganisms, removes toxins and helps reduce bad smell associated with tissue and cell breakdown36–38.
Finally, the keratolytic effect of the fourth clincal case was achieved at a dose of 3,000 ppm. This property of CD suggests that when used against a possible melanoma, the solution could promote renewal of skin tissue, and thus reduce abnormal malignant cell development. Well, it has been shown that CD oxidizes proteins, by interacting with cysteine residues, tryptophan and tyrosine39–42. Therefore, doses of 3,000 ppm of CD have high oxidative stress indices and deplete reserves of the antioxidant glutathione, thus inducing selective apoptosis 1,43,44. That is, CD has an apoptotic effect on microorganisms and epidermal cells 8,45.
Conclusion
For each case, total dermal regeneration was observed, with aesthetic results, without observable side effects or adverse interactions with any of the treatment used concurrently. that the observed results highlight that the systemic use of a CD solution at the concentration herein reported was safe for the patient. Thus, we conclude that a CD solution at concentrations between 1,000 ppm and 3,000 ppm, used topically or systemically according to the protocols used here, is safe as an antiseptic and tissue repair. The clinical cases described here provide relevant information that can aid future medical decisions to use and prescribe safe and economical antiseptic treatment of skin lesions without the need of antibiotics. Controlled clinical studies are proposed to determine the efficacy and safety of the F15, C20, D and O protocol as a treatment for skin lesions.
Informed consent
Written informed consent was obtained from the patients or their legal guardians for the publication of this case study and accompanying images.