Chinese Journal of Tissue Engineering Research ›› 2021, Vol. 25 ›› Issue (22): 3578-3583.doi: 10.3969/j.issn.2095-4344.3153

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Hydrogel as drug scaffold in skin wound repair: challenges of clinical application possibilities

Gan Lili, Xiong Na, Liu Yanfei   

  1. Key Laboratory of Cell Engineering in Guizhou Province, Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University, Zunyi 563003, Guizhou Province, China
  • Received:2020-06-10 Revised:2020-06-15 Accepted:2020-07-11 Online:2021-08-08 Published:2021-01-21
  • Contact: Liu Yanfei, PhD, Associate researcher, Master’s supervisor, Key Laboratory of Cell Engineering in Guizhou Province, Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University, Zunyi 563003, Guizhou Province, China
  • About author:Gan Lili, Master candidate, Key Laboratory of Cell Engineering in Guizhou Province, Affiliated Hospital of Zunyi Medical University, Zunyi 563003, Guizhou Province, China
  • Supported by:
    the Project of the Health and Family Planning Commission of Guizhou Province, No. Gzwjkj2017-1-036 (to LYF); the Fund for Less Developed Regions of the National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 31860265 (to LYF)

Abstract: BACKGROUND:  Hydrogels play an important role in the field of wound repair because of its three-dimensional network structure, excellent moisture absorption and retention properties and biocompatibility.
OBJECTIVE: To review the application of hydrogel dressings as scaffold materials in sustained drug release, debridement and hemostasis for skin traumas.
METHODS: We took “hydrogels, wound healing, diabetic foot, skin ulcer, burns, radiodermatitis, chronic wounds, drug Carriers” as the key words in Chinese and English, respectively, to retrieve the related literature published from 2000 to 2019 in PubMed, CNKI, and Wanfang databases based on internet search. 
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Hydrogels have a three-dimensional structure similar to extracellular matrix and possess good plasticity, moisture retention, self-healing and long-lasting sustained release properties. As scaffold materials, hydrogels loaded with one or more drugs on skin wounds can enhance the anti-infection, hemostatic and debridement ability of drugs, promote cell adhesion and growth factor expression, induce angiogenesis, collagen deposition, macrophage polarization and granulation tissue formation, and finally, lead to the sweat glands and hair follicles formation, epithelialization acceleration, and shorten the healing process. However, the development and application of multi-functional hydrogels are mostly in the basic research stage of animal experiments, and there is still a lack of large-scale clinical studies to prove their efficacy and safety.

Key words: material, hydrogel, self-assembling material, wound repair, diabetic foot, skin ulcer, chronic wounds, drug sustained release, review

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