UPMC Pediatric Wound Care Clinic

Does your child suffer from chronic or hard-to-heal wounds?

At UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh, we provide complete, patient-centered treatments to help your child's wounds heal.

What Is a Chronic Wound?

A chronic wound is any injury to the skin that doesn't heal.

These wounds can result from:

• Poor circulation
• Sustained pressure
• Infection
• Chronic diseases

Our experts may be able to help if your child's wound hasn't healed:

• By at least 50 percent after four weeks.
• Fully after 12 weeks.

Our Wound Healing Services for Kids

We offer expertise in helping children overcome nonhealing wounds with great results and success in preventing recurrence. We pride ourselves on helping kids with any type of wound, even complex wounds or ones that have failed treatment elsewhere.

Common wounds we treat

• Arterial/ischemic ulcers
• Burns
• Crush injuries
• Diabetic leg and foot wounds
• Failed skin grafts or flaps
• Necrotizing soft tissue infections
• Nonhealing, post-surgical wounds
• Pressure sores
• Skin ulcers on the leg
• Trauma wounds
• Other slow or nonhealing wounds

Your Child's Wound Assessment and Treatment Plan

The Wound Care Clinic at UPMC Children’s Hospital offers specialized treatment that begins with a thorough assessment asking:

• Why has the wound formed?
• What is your child's lifestyle?
• What factors are contributing to why the wound isn't healing?

The assessment may include a:

• Review of your child’s medical history.
• Questionnaire on your child’s general health and lifestyle.
• Bone scan or MRI.
• Tissue sample for further study in the lab.

From these tests, our doctors learn vital information about your child’s blood flow and tissue oxygenation. We also find out if an infection is complicating the healing process.

After this assessment, a doctor designs a treatment plan based on those results.

Your child's wound care plan may include one or more of the following:

• Advanced wound dressings
• Education
• Nutrition consults
• Offloading devices
• Physical therapy
• Prescribed medicine
• Vacuum-assisted closure
• Wound debridement

A Team Approach to Healing Your Child's Wound

The Wound Care Clinic at UPMC Children’s partners with many specialists to diagnose, treat, and heal your child's wound.

Our team of wound care experts includes:

• Ear, nose, and throat doctors
• Endocrinologists
• General surgeons
• Infectious disease doctors
• Internal medicine doctors
• Pain management specialists
• Physical therapists
• Podiatrists
• Orthopedic surgeons

Our team closely follows the wound healing process and informs your family doctor of your child's care plan and progress.

Contact the Wound Healing Clinic at UPMC Children's

To learn more or make an appointment with our wound specialists, call 412-692-8622.