Is Honey an Answer for Eradication of Biofilms?

Biofilm formation in chronic ulcers is an important cause for delayed healing of wounds. Eradication of biofilms is a challenge as this is not amenable to standard methods of ulcer management. Currently, there are very limited options for its eradication except manual debridement which is painful, needs repeated anesthesia, and cannot be done on daily basis. Unprocessed naturally extracted honey has multiple unique properties as a local applicant which aid in faster healing. This article presents the incidence of biofilms in chronic ulcers and use of honey as a local applicant in enhancing healing. Sixty-four patients with ulcers were studied for presence of biofilm. Among them, 43 (67%) had biofilms which took significantly long time to heal in comparison with ulcers without biofilms (p < 0.002). Later, efficacy of honey in eradication of biofilms was studied in 56 patients with chronic ulcers having biofilms. There was a significant reduction in time for eradication, (p < 0.0175) healing of ulcers, and total duration of hospital stay in comparison with ulcers managed by standard methods. Results suggest that natural unprocessed honey has a great potential in eradication of biofilms.