Biomedical Applications of Polyvinyl Alcohol‐Based Bionanocomposites

Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) is a synthetic biodegradable polymer that can mimic natural polymers and has excellent characteristics of biocompatibility in human tissues. As a polymeric matrix, PVA properties can also be enhanced or changed by the introduction of nanofillers. Combining PVA and a variety of nanofillers, it is possible to create materials with unique characteristics with many applications in the biomedical field such as drug delivery, wound healing, tissue engineering and medical devices. This chapter will focus on a review of literature about the research of nanocomposites using PVA as a matrix and the properties possible by the introduction of a range of different nanofillers for biomedical usage.