Wound

Third-degree burns typically require very complex treatment, and leave nasty scars once they've healed. Researchers at Johns Hopkins University, however, are reporting success at treating such burns on lab mice, using a new type of hydrogel that grows new skin (as opposed to scar tissue) over burn sites. The gel contains no drugs or biological components - it's made mainly from water and dissolved dextran, which is a sugar-like polymer. Read More

Researchers have developed a fiber that changes color in response to temperature with the aim of creating a smart bandage that can indicate the state of underlying wounds and warn of infection. With the ability to show temperature changes of less than 0.5 of a degree Celsius, the smart bandage would allow for easier and faster identification of healing problems that are typically accompanied by an increase or decrease in local temperature, such as infection or interruptions to blood supply. Read More

When it comes to “painless” bandages, many of us might assume that they’re designed mainly for children, who simply don’t like the sting that comes with the removal of conventional products. The fact is, however, that approximately 1.5 million patients in U.S. health care facilities receive skin injuries caused by bandage removal every year. Many of these patients are elderly, require repeated tapings in the same area, or have fragile skin for other reasons. It’s for people like these that 3M designed its new Kind Removal Silicone Tape. Read More

When the sutures are removed from a surgical incision, the natural tension of the surrounding skin starts to pull the two edges of the wound away from one another. While the incision site will still usually heal, that wound-opening mechanical stress causes excessive scar tissue to form. Researchers from Stanford University, however, have created a new type of dressing that removes such stress, and has been shown to dramatically reduce scarring. Read More

Many diabetics suffer from a condition known as venous stasis, which can result in wounds on their extremities that remain unhealed for up to several years – if infection sets in, amputation of the limb is sometimes even necessary. Such wounds can sometimes be treated with vacuum-assisted systems, but the equipment required is expensive, and must be carried by the patient at all times. In clinical trials conducted last year, however, human venous stasis wounds were quickly and thoroughly healed with an inexpensive new glass nanofiber material, that looks like cotton candy. Read More

Chronic wounds, such as diabetic foot ulcers and burns, can be very difficult to heal. This can result in pain, infection, or worse. Proteins known as growth factors have been shown to help such wounds heal, although purifying these proteins can be pricey, and they don’t last very long once applied to a wound. There is now hope, however, in a nanometer-sized drug that its creators are describing as “robotic.” Read More

Wounding yourself can be bad enough, but having to regularly remove the dressing to check for infection can be painful and can also compound things by exposing the wound and giving germs the chance to enter. Now researchers have developed a new material for dressings and plaster that changes color if an infection arises, making it possible to check wounds without changing the dressing. Read More

For some reason, and nobody knows exactly why, the healing process for open wounds can be sped up by applying suction to them under a tightly-sealed bandage. The negative pressure this creates has been benefiting patients for decades but because mechanical pumps are expensive and they need a constant electricity supply the technology is not readily available, often where it is needed most – in the developing world. A newly developed basic negative pressure pump that doesn’t require electricity, is cheap to manufacture, lightweight to transport and can be left in place for days could change that. Read More

Blood clotting is a complex cascade of events that works well for normal cuts and scrapes, however, more serious injuries can overwhelm the body’s natural blood-clotting process. With traumatic injury the leading cause of death for people aged 4 to 44, a team of researchers has sought a way to enhance the natural blood-clotting process by creating synthetic platelets that show promise in halting internal and external bleeding. Read More