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Review
. 2020 Dec 18;21(24):9656.
doi: 10.3390/ijms21249656.

Chitosan and Cellulose-Based Hydrogels for Wound Management

Sibusiso Alven  1 , Blessing Atim Aderibigbe  1
Affiliations
Review

Chitosan and Cellulose-Based Hydrogels for Wound Management

Sibusiso Alven et al. Int J Mol Sci. .

Abstract

Wound management remains a challenge worldwide, although there are several developed wound dressing materials for the management of acute and chronic wounds. The wound dressings that are currently used include hydrogels, films, wafers, nanofibers, foams, topical formulations, transdermal patches, sponges, and bandages. Hydrogels exhibit unique features which make them suitable wound dressings such as providing a moist environment for wound healing, exhibiting high moisture content, or creating a barrier against bacterial infections, and are suitable for the management of exuding and granulating wounds. Biopolymers have been utilized for their development due to their non-toxic, biodegradable, and biocompatible properties. Hydrogels have been prepared from biopolymers such as cellulose and chitosan by crosslinking with selected synthetic polymers resulting in improved mechanical, biological, and physicochemical properties. They were useful by accelerating wound re-epithelialization and also mimic skin structure, inducing skin regeneration. Loading antibacterial agents into them prevented bacterial invasion of wounds. This review article is focused on hydrogels formulated from two biopolymers-chitosan and cellulose-for improved wound management.

Keywords: acute wounds; burn wounds; cellulose; chitosan; chronic wounds; diabetic wounds; hydrogel; wound dressings.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Properties of chitosan and cellulose.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Summarized sequential phases of the wound healing process.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Molecular structures of biopolymers: chitosan 1, cellulose 2, hyaluronic acid 3, alginate 4, Elastin 5, dextran 6, fibrin 7, pectin 8.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Schematic diagram of hydrogels.
Figure 5
Figure 5
A schematic diagram illustrating the efficacy of chitosan-based hydrogel as an effective wound dressing.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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