The care and rehabilitation of acute and chronic
wounds have a significant social and economic impact on patients and global health. This burden is primarily due to the adverse effects of
infections, prolonged recovery, and the associated treatment costs. Chronic
wounds can be treated with a variety of approaches, which include surgery,
negative pressure wound therapy,
wound dressings, and
hyperbaric oxygen therapy. However, each of these strategies has an array of limitations. The existing dry
wound dressings lack functionality in promoting wound healing and exacerbating
pain by adhering to the
wound.
Hydrogels, which are commonly
polymer-based and swell in water, have been proposed as potential remedies due to their ability to provide a moist environment that facilitates wound healing. Their unique composition enables them to absorb
wound exudates, exhibit shape adaptability, and be modified to incorporate active compounds such as
growth factors and antibacterial compounds. This review provides an updated discussion of the leading natural and synthetic
hydrogels utilized in wound healing, details the latest advancements in
hydrogel technology, and explores alternate approaches in this field. Search engines Scopus, PubMed, Science Direct, and Web of Science were utilized to review the advances in
hydrogel applications over the last fifteen years.