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Updated: May 29, 2026

Development of a Benchtop Model for Evaluating the Compatibility of Wound Dressing Materials with Negative Pressure Wound Therapy Systems
Published on: May 2, 2025
Superabsorbent polymer-containing wound dressings have a beneficial effect on wound healing by reducing PMN elastase
1Department of Dermatology, University Medical Center, Erfurter Str. 34, 07740 Jena, Germany. C.Wiegand@med.uni-jena.de
Abstract:
A comprehensive in vitro approach was used to assess the effects of superabsorbent polymer (SAP) containing wound dressings in treatment of non-healing wounds. A slight negative effect on HaCaT cells was noted in vitro which is most likely due to the Ca(2+) deprivation of the medium by binding to the SAP. It could be shown that SAP wound dressings are able to bind considerable amounts of elastase reducing enzyme activity significantly. Furthermore, SAP's inhibit the formation of free radicals. The SAP-containing wound dressings tested also exhibited a significant to strong antimicrobial activity effectively impeding the growth of gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria as well as yeasts. In conclusion, in vitro data confirm the positive effect of SAP wound dressings observed in vivo and suggest that they should be specifically useful for wound cleansing.
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