Hydron, a synthetic barrier dressing composed of polyhydroxyethyl methacrylate (PHEMA) and polyethylene glycol (PEG), was applied to the burn wounds of 15 hospitalized patients. Application of the dressing was found to be time-consuming to the doctor and tedious for the patient. Dressing integrity was frequently broken by cracking, peeling, or ineffectual drying. Burn-wound colonization occurred beneath Hydron no more frequently than observed in other patients whose wounds had been treated with topical antibacterial agents. In general, the application of Hydron caused a reduction in burn-wound pain. In its present form, Hydron did not produce results superior to those observed in our other hospitalized burn patients. Due to technical difficulties, it is no longer being used in our unit.