Regenerative bandage that heals diabetic wounds faster found!

Emobileclinic Researchers Corner 

One of the common complications in people with diabetes is lower leg amputation in about 15% of them occasioned by painful and difficulty to treat foot ulcer. About 24% of this complication which appear harmless often resulted into death. The management of this condition is of great concern in the medical field.
In a recent publication of Journal of Controlled Release, researchers from the Northwestern University have developed a new treatment for this severe and potentially deadly complication of diabetes known as regenerative bandage, the novel material heals diabetic wounds four times faster than a standard bandage and has the added benefit of promoting healing without side effects.
According to Prof. Guillerno Ameer, foot ulcers cause many serious problems for diabetic patients noting that some sores do not heal fast enough and are prone to infection. This was what informed them to use some of laboratory works in biomaterials for medical applications and controlled drug release to help heal those wounds.
Diabetes damages the nerve and causes feet numbness. It is not unexpected that a diabetic person would experience some condition as simple as a blister or small scrape that becomes unaware and unmanaged because they cannot perceived it presence. The capillary walls become thickened occasioned by retarded blood circulation which make it more difficult for these wounds to heal.
The treatment drugs for these chronic wounds exist, but they are expensive with some significant side effects. One gel, for example, contains a growth factor that has been reported to increase cancer risk with overuse as remarked by Ameer that it should not be acceptable for patients who are trying to heal an open sore to have to deal with an increased risk of cancer due to treating the wound.
Previously, Ameer’s laboratory invented a thermo-responsive material with intrinsicantioxidant properties to counter inflammation that is able to deliver therapeutic cells and proteins. His team used this material to slowly release into the wound a protein that hastens the body’s ability to repair itself by recruiting stem cells to the wound and creating new blood vessels to increase blood circulation. Ameer holds that the inherent antioxidant properties within the material also reduce oxidative stress to help the wound heal and the ability of the material to reversibly go from liquid to solid with temperature changes protects the wound.”
In collaboration with Zhang, Ameer imaged diabetic wounds to discover that they were much healthier after application of the regenerative bandage. The blood flow to the wound was significantly higher than in those without Ameer’s bandage.

Source
Guillermo, A. Ameer, et. al, (2016): Sustained release of stromal cell derived factor-1 from an antioxidant thermoresponsive hydrogel enhances dermal wound healing in diabetes. Journal of Controlled Release.