Lviv doctors use fish skin to treat Ukrainian soldier's severe burns
According to the Lviv City Council, it covers the wounds, helps ease pain, and supports skin healing, Rubryka reports.
The soldier, Andrii, suffered severe burns in a Russian FPV drone attack. After treatment in other Ukrainian cities, he was transferred to the largest burn unit in Lviv, at St. Luke's Hospital. Doctors there are using a new treatment that covers some of his wounds with a biological dressing made from Atlantic cod skin.
Mine and blast injuries often come with burns, making treatment more difficult. Andrii has mosaic burns, with patches of skin burned to different depths.
These injuries need several types of treatment. Surgeons remove badly damaged tissue and use the fish-skin dressing to cover some wounds.
"It forms a protective layer over the wound and helps the tissue heal naturally," the city council said.
Andrii volunteered to defend Ukraine. He was wounded when a Russian FPV drone hit him as he was leaving his combat position. The attack left him with severe injuries and burns.
Ivan Ryk, head of the Thermal Injury and Plastic Surgery Center at St. Luke's Hospital, said closing burn wounds quickly is key to recovery. Doctors try to cover them as soon as possible.
One way to do that is with a dressing made from fish skin. It protects damaged tissue and can make patients more comfortable, Ryk said.
"Fish skin contains omega fatty acids. It covers the wound well, creates a protective layer, helps ease pain, and prevents infection," Ryk said.
The dressing can also help reduce the pain of burn injuries. It protects the wound while new skin grows underneath.
"That's what everyone with a burn injury hopes for. The pain eases, the wound is covered, and new skin grows underneath the fish skin," Ryk said.
But the treatment has its limits. Atlantic cod skin is expensive, so doctors carefully select patients most likely to benefit.
Still, doctors welcome new ways to treat severe burns. Ryk said burn surgeons work with some of the most seriously injured patients, so new treatment options are important.
"Burn surgery means working with some of the most severely injured patients. We're glad whenever we get the chance to learn and use new methods," he said.
Andrii's wife, Sofiia, has stayed by his side throughout his treatment. She was with him in hospitals in Dnipro and Vinnytsia and now supports him in Lviv.
Andrii is still recovering. After treatment in several cities, he continues his rehabilitation in Lviv. He has praised the medical team helping him recover and get his life back.
Lviv also has a specialized burn center for children at St. Nicholas Children's Hospital. The renovated center, part of the city's First Medical Association, is the only one of its kind in western Ukraine. It treats children with the most severe burns, allowing them to receive care at home rather than traveling abroad.
Ukraine's Health Ministry has also introduced new burn treatment standards based on European and North American practices.
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5 of November 2026
