Scientists Develop New Material That Improves Wound Healing, Keeps Bacteria from Sticking

Treating wounds has now become more sophisticated than sewing stitches and applying gauze, however, dressings still have certain shortcoming. Now scientists are reporting the next step in the evolution of wound treatment with a material that leads to faster healing than existing commercial dressings and prevents potentially harmful bacteria from sticking. Their study appears in the journal ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces.

Yung Chang and colleagues note that the need for improved dressings is becoming urgent as the global population ages. With it, health care providers will see more patients with bed sores and associated chronic skin wounds. An ideal dressing would speed up healing in addition to protecting a wound from bacterial infection. But current options fall short in one way or another. Hydrogels provide a damp environment to promote healing, but they don't allow a wound to "breathe." Dry films with tiny pores allow air to move in and out, but blood cells and bacteria can stick to the films and threaten the healing process. To solve these problems all at once, Chang's team looked to new materials.