Polyhexamethylene guanidine hydrochloride‐functionalized wound dressings: Physical, mechanical and biological evaluations

Abstract

The objective of the present study is fabrication of wound dressing membranes with effective antibacterial activity, good biocompatibility with fibroblast cells, appropriate mechanical properties in both dry and wet states to potentially provide physical protection to wounds at different stages of healing, and the ability to maintain an optimum moist environment over the wounded area. To achieve this, a new silane functional polyhexamethylene guanidine hydrochloride was synthesized and utilized as a crosslinker for a polymeric matrix consisting of poly(vinyl alcohol) and gelatin. Thin monolayer films of the resulting polymeric networks were characterized and subjected to different physical and biological assays. The tensile test results indicated that the prepared dressing membranes exhibit good tensile strength in both dry (44 MPa) and hydrated (700 KPa) states. The fluid handling capacity of the dressings was found to be in the range of 2.23 to 2.29 g 10−1 m−2 day−1, which is appropriate for treating wounds with “light” to “moderate” exudate levels. The MTT assay showed excellent biocompatibility, evidenced by high fibroblast cells viability cultured directly over dressings (over 70%) or cultured in media containing the leachates extracted from the dressings (over 90%). Moreover, the dressings exhibited potent antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus (87% killing) and Escherichia coli (99% killing) bacterial strains.