London: A 'spray-on skin' can speed up healing of chronic ulcers by 50 percent, a new study suggests.

The spray quickly healed venous leg ulcers (the most common type) and improved the chances of wound closure in 228 patients. Those receiving the most effective dosage were 52 percent more likely to see their ulcer clear up after three months than untreated patients.

They also experienced a 16 percent greater reduction in wound area after seven days. In addition, the treatment helped wounds to close 21 days earlier, medical journal Lancet reports.

Herbert Slade, study co-author from Healthpoint Biotherapeutics in Fort Worth, Texas, U.S, said: "The treatment we tested in this study has the potential to vastly improve recovery times and overall recovery from leg ulcers without the need for a skin graft."

People with restricted movement, obese individuals and those with varicose veins all face a greater risk of developing venous leg ulcers, the Daily Mail reports.

Standard treatment consists of compression bandages, infection control and wound dressings. However, this only heals between 30 to 70 percent of ulcers. While skin grafts have been used, this results in another wound at the site from which the transplanted skin is taken.