Adhesive, Stretchable, and Photothermal Antibacterial Hydrogel Dressings for Wound Healing of Infected Skin Burn at Joints

Dressings for infectious skin burn wounds at joints should have therapeutic functions as well as high tissue-adhesion, stretching, and self-healing properties. This makes it difficult for most hydrogel dressings to simultaneously meet the above-mentioned requirements. In this study, poly(vinyl alcohol), anhydrous sodium borax, epigallocatechin gallate, and copper chloride were used to prepare a hydrogel dressing (PBEC) for the infected burn wound healing at joints. The PBEC hydrogel can adhere to a variety of substrates, has a stretching capacity, and quickly self-healing after being damaged. Additionally, the PBEC hydrogel has the properties of reactive oxygen species scavenging, photothermal sterilization, hemostatic ability, and biocompatibility. Finally, the hydrogel could accelerate the process of wound healing in vivo, especially with the assistance of near-infrared radiation. Therefore, the hydrogel dressing shows great potential for clinical application in the healing of infected burn wounds at joints.