Effect of hydrogel grafting, water and surfactant wetting on the adherence of PET wound dressings

Traditional wound dressings, including cotton gauze, absorbent pads and bandages, can cause trauma and pain to wounds during dressing changes, leading to a variety of physical and psychosocial sequelae. The aim of this study was to adapt an in vitro model of adherence to evaluate the effects of various methods to theoretically reduce the adherence of wound dressings. Gelatin in liquid form was cast onto poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) fabric and allowed to solidify and progressively dry to simulate wound desiccation in the clinical setting. A 180° peel test of PET from the gelatin slab yielded adherence data of peeling energy. The peeling energy of PET increased with the drying time. It was possible to reduce the force by drying at 75% relative humidity (RH). After drying for 24 h, either 500 μL of water or surfactant solution was added onto the PET surface (16 × 60 mm2). The peeling energy decreased dramatically with wetting and there was no significant difference between water and surfactant. As a long-term strategy for decreasing adherence, a thin layer of polyacrylamide (PAM) hydrogel was deposited onto PET fabric via UV irradiation. This resulted in a much lower peeling energy without severely compromising fabric flexibility. This hydrogel layer could also serve as a reservoir for bioactive and antimicrobial agents which could be sustainably released to create a microbe-free microenvironment for optimized wound healing.