Badly burned boy resumes life with dad's skin

(ANSA) - ROME, JAN 14 - A badly burned boy in Sicily has resumed his normal life as a four-year-old after innovative surgery to heal his injuries using skin from his father, medical sources said Tuesday.
    The boy, who had severe burns over 60% of his body, was treated in the major burns unit of Catania hospital.
    But he has returned home having achieved clinical recovery, thanks to the timely and integrated treatment provided to him and the use of advanced and innovative techniques, including that of having received "portions" of healthy skin from his father.
    "The first step," explained Rosario Ranno, director of the Cannizzaro major burns center, "was to perform an enzymatic escarolysis, a modern method that allows us to remove all the burned skin without surgery and without blood loss.
    "We also used latest-generation dermal substitutes, which helped reduce the risk of infections and stabilize the hemodynamic conditions of the little patient.
    "To promote healing, a skin transplant was performed taken from the father, exploiting biological compatibility to regenerate the largest areas of damaged tissue".
    In addition, the Meek technique, an innovative skin expansion procedure, was also used in the treatment of the little one: essentially, small fragments of Riccardo's healthy skin were removed, cut into micro-grafts and then expanded 3 or 4 times, to cover a much larger surface area than the available skin.
    Thanks to this procedure, it was possible to optimize the areas of healthy tissue of the child, further accelerating the healing process.
    "Our center," said Salvatore Giuffrida, general manager of Cannizzaro, "has confirmed its role as a point of reference for the treatment of burns in Central-Southern Italy and of excellence at a national level.
    "In 2024, more than 120 severe burn patients were hospitalized and treated, some of whom came not only from Sicily but also from Calabria, with significant active mobility". (ANSA).