For healthcare professionals, wound care management plays a significant part in their ability to provide a positive outcome for patients. There have been many recent innovations in wound care that help prevent bleeding extremely fast. This is a huge market, as the global advanced wound care market is expected to exceed $14 billion by 2026. Therefore, not only will these advancements be extremely profitable for the companies providing these innovative solutions, but they will also save lives.
A solution inspired by barnacles
One of the most recent innovations is a rapid-sealing paste that can quickly stop bleeding. The solution was developed by researchers at The Mayo Clinic and some colleagues at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The most interesting part of this emerging technology is that barnacles inspired it. Barnacles are sea animals well-known for sticking to the bottom of ships, large fish, and rocks. They exude some kind of oil matrix that cleans out the surface by getting rid of moisture while also producing a protein that helps cross-link them with molecules available on any surface they want to stick to.
The same two-step process that barnacles use helps the sealing paste work when it’s applied to tissues or organs. Before more efficient wound care methods were established, most surgeons would stop bleeding by forming a clot and speeding up the coagulation process. However, it still wasn’t fast enough because it would take a few minutes. More tests were needed. But fortunately, after the testing phase, it was proven that the rapid-sealing paste was effective. The testing phase ensures the quality and reliability of the paste.
Through the testing, the paste manufacturers set technical standards for their products. Therefore, you’re assured that the product is effective and made from high-quality materials that won’t harm your health. Pre-clinical studies have been conducted to check the efficiency of the paste, which shows that the paste can stop the bleeding of a wound in only 15 seconds. This paste is a promising innovation in wound care. It can be very useful in dealing with hemostasis, even in internal organs, and for patients with clotting disorders.
Tracking wound healing with smart dressings
Smart dressings that glow when a wound is not healing properly have been developed. Researchers used built-in nanosensors to determine when a wound is not healing as it should or when an infection has set in. These smart dressings are effective in fighting fungi and bacteria. They also eliminate the sometimes painful process of removing a bandage to monitor a wound’s healing. These bandages also last substantially longer than the current ones, which are more widely used today and provide more comfort and better healing for patients.
Advancements in wound care are simple to measure. The faster a wound can be healed, the better the chances of a positive outcome for the injured individual. Technological advancements will make wound care significantly easier shortly. As more of these innovations become commonplace, lives will be saved, and the quality of life will be improved.
