From Severe Burns to a Life in Motion

In 2015, eight-year-old Tyler Schultz and one of his brothers were playing at a friend's house when an accident changed his life. The children were dipping sticks in a diesel fuel additive and lighting them on fire. When one of the sticks was placed back into the additive, lingering flames ignited it, causing an explosion that left Tyler with severe burns over much of his body.

Tyler's younger brother quickly grabbed a hose to help extinguish the flames, while his older brother rushed him home and alerted their mother, Amanda. "I thought maybe Tyler had skinned a knee or broken an arm," Amanda recalls. "But when I got to him, it was obvious he was badly burned." The family raced Tyler to a hospital about 40 miles from their home before he was airlifted to Minneapolis for specialized burn care.

The recovery ahead was daunting. In the first three weeks alone, Tyler underwent approximately 13 surgeries. More remarkable, over the course of his treatment, he would have more than 100.

Among the technologies used during his care was Integra® Dermal Regeneration Template (IDRT), which was applied to areas where preserving flexibility and movement would be especially important, including his elbow, stomach and back. For children with severe burns, maintaining mobility can be particularly challenging. As scar tissue contracts over time, it can restrict movement and may not keep pace with a growing body.

Preserving Tyler's mobility was a priority for his family. Physicians initially expected him to spend about six months in the hospital, including three months of rehabilitation. Instead, he was back home with his family just two months after arriving.

But the recovery did not end there. Tyler committed himself to intensive therapy and the physical and emotional work of rebuilding his strength and independence. "He's the kind of kid that if you tell him he can't do something, he's going to find a way to do it," Amanda says. And he did. Just six weeks after returning home, Tyler placed third in a cross-country event. He went on to become a state qualifier in wrestling, and a few years later on the football field, Tyler and his teammates became state champions.

For Amanda, watching her son regain and maintain his mobility has been one of the most meaningful parts of his recovery. Having seen other children with severe burns undergo painful scar-revision procedures as they grew, she was grateful that Tyler's experience was different. The areas treated with IDRT remained soft and flexible, allowing him to continue growing and moving without requiring those revisions. "He moves like everyone else," she says.

Today, Tyler is focused on the future rather than the accident. He is actively studying diesel technology and hopes to work on tractors and other heavy equipment. Tyler is more than a burn survivor. He is a young man who has continued to grow, compete and pursue the life he wants.

Note: Clinical results may vary.

Important Safety Information

Integra® Dermal Regeneration Template

Indications: Indicated for the post excisional treatment of life-threatening full-thickness or deep partial-thickness thermal injuries where sufficient autograft is not available at the time of excision or not desirable due to the physiological condition of the patient. Integra template is also indicated for the repair of scar contractures when other therapies have failed or when donor sites for repair are not sufficient or desirable due to the physiological condition of the patient; and treatment of partial and full-thickness neuropathic diabetic foot ulcers that are greater than six weeks in duration with no capsule, tendon, or bone exposed, when used in conjunction with standard diabetic ulcer care.

Contraindications: Patients with known hypersensitivity to bovine collagen or chondroitin materials; clinically diagnosed infected wounds.