A new device for burn patients is being introduced to the Atlanta area through a therapy program at St. Joseph’s Hospital. Specifically used on children at the hospital, the device is very helpful in controlling the scarring on the burned face.

A “transparent face mask” is the final outcome of a long process that includes making and sanding a face mold, heating clear plastic to form a mask, shaping the mask and attaching straps. After hours of work by an occupational therapist, the mask is ready for 20 hours daily wear.

The mask is an effective way of applying pressure to the skin to prevent and reduce scarring, according to Chris Bosonetto Doane, Dir. of Occupational Therapy at St. Joseph’s. “The pressure greatly modifies the natural scarring process and can prevent some distortion,” she said.

The clear mask is also helpful to the therapist who can see through the mask to evaluate the pressure. With the elastic bandages and opaque splinting materials previously used, it is difficult to determine whether the pressure is applied properly. Also, the elastic bandages cannot put stress on some areas of the face, for instance around the nose, while a plastic mask can fit securely over difficult to reach areas, Mrs. Doane explained.

As the burn scars heal, the mask must be modified weekly at first, then in longer intervals. Usually, the patients wear the plastic mask during the day and both elastic bandages and plastic mask at night. The elastic “hood”, worn underneath the mask, maintains constant pressure while the mask maintains facial contour.

“The children don’t mind wearing the masks,” Mrs. Doane says. “In fact, they like having their own masks.”

“I don’t think the mask is the complete answer to preventing scar tissue,” she said, “but it is a valuable tool we have not used in Atlanta and we are seeing exciting results.” She said that the key to optimum results is getting a child started on the program before scar tissue begins forming. “We are working with some children who have already developed scar tissue before they get to our hospital, but their results are not as impressive as those of the children who begin the program right away,” she said.

Saint Joseph’s is the referral center for the Cripple Children’s Burn Unit of Georgia Department of Human Resources. The hospital uses a team effort in caring for the children, both from the referral clinic and private patients. Occupational, physical and speech therapists work with nurses and doctors to create a comprehensive program of burn care.

The mask approach could be used on teenagers and adults, also, Mrs. Doane said, but is now being adapted to the children in the hospital because there are no adult patients now at St. Joseph’s.

“We are learning so many refinements of the mask technique as we work with it daily,” Mrs. Doane said. “It’s a time consuming approach, but the results are well worth our time.”