Wounds affect large numbers of patients and produce a considerable socioeconomic burden. In 2012/2013, about 2.2 million patients were treated by the NHS in the UK for an acute or chronic wound at a cost of £4.5–5.1 billion (Guest et al, 2015). Timely healing of wounds can help to minimise impact on patients and contain costs. Wound infection or increased wound bioburden can cause or contribute to the delayed healing of wounds. The appropriate management of infection is therefore a key focus for clinicians treating wounds.

A wide range of antimicrobial silver preparations and dressings are used in the management of acute and chronic wounds and have an important role in antimicrobial stewardship. The form of metallic silver or silver compound and the dressing components used in an individual product influence antimicrobial activity and clinical effectiveness. Consequently, clinicians need a clear understanding of the properties of an individual product to ensure effective use.

Ag Oxysalts^TM (silver oxynitrate) is a silver compound with unique properties that produce rapid, sustained, broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity. Ag Oxysalts is currently the only silver compound used in dressings to release Ag⁺, Ag²⁺ and Ag³⁺ ions. A group of experts in wound management and microbiology met in November 2017 to:

• Discuss how the chemical properties of Ag Oxysalts relate to its antimicrobial activity and clinical performance
• Explore the potential impact of Ag Oxysalts dressings KerraContact^TM Ag and KerraCel^TM Ag (Crawford Healthcare) on wound healing
• Devise treatment pathways for the use of KerraContact Ag in a range of acute and chronic wound types.

The discussions at the meeting resulted in this document, which aims to provide clinicians with understanding of the unique chemistry of Ag Oxysalts and the information they need for appropriate use of KerraContact Ag in clinical practice to improve outcomes.