Preparation and characterization of PVA/SA/HA composite hydrogels for wound dressing

A composite hydrogel based on, by introducing, polyvinyl alcohol, sodium alginate, and hyaluronic acid was fabricated using CaCl2 as a cross-linker. The physical properties including morphology, water vapor transmission rate, and hydrophilicity were investigated. All PVA/SA/HA composite hydrogels with different compositions had highly homogeneous and interconnected pores, and the morphologies of the PVA/SA/HA hydrogels ranged from fibrous structure to irregular structure with increasing content of SA. The introduction of sodium alginate enhanced the hydrophilicity and water vapor transmission capacity of the hydrogel; however, the hydrophilicity of the composite hydrogels decreased with the increasing cross-linker content.