The Role of Biopolymer-Based Materials in Obstetrics and Gynecology Applications: A Review

Abstract

Biopolymers have gained tremendous attention in many daily life applications, including medical applications, in the past few years. Obstetrics and gynecology are two fields dealing with sensitive parts of the woman’s body and her newborn baby, which are normally associated with many issues such as toxicity, infections, and even gene alterations. Medical professions that use screening, examination, pre, and post-operation materials should benefit from a better understanding of each type of material’s characteristics, health, and even environmental effects. The underlying principles of biopolymer-based materials for different obstetric and gynecologic applications may discover various advantages and benefits of using such materials. This review presents the health impact of conventional polymer-based materials on pregnant women’s health and highlights the potential use of biopolymers as a safer option. The recent works on utilizing different biopolymer-based materials in obstetric and gynecologic are presented in this review, which includes suture materials in obstetric and gynecologic surgeries, cosmetic and personal care products, vaginal health, and drug delivery; as well as a wound dressing and healing materials. This review highlights the main issues and challenges of biopolymers in obstetric and gynecologic applications.

Applications of Biopolymers for Drugs and Probiotics Delivery

“…Biopolymers present important features such as biodegradability [ 33 , 34 ], biocompatibility [ 35 ], sustainability [ 36 ], bioresorbability [ 37 ], flexibility [ 38 ], antibacterial activity [ 6 ], renewability [ 39 ], and stability [ 2 ]. They are also less toxic [ 40 ], non-immunogenic [ 41 ], non-carcinogenic, non-thrombogenic, carbon neutral, and have the advantage of easy extraction [ 42 ]. These properties are directly influenced by parameters such as the type of material used as the structural matrix (charge distribution, molecular mass, and conformation), film developing conditions (concentration, pH, solvent, temperature, etc.)…”

“…Some studies have associated these materials with potential adverse health problems, particularly in pregnant women and newborn infants. To this end, hormonally active agents are a group of polymeric chemicals that have been associated with critical health issues such as cancerous tumors, congenital disabilities, and other disorders [ 40 ]. Furthermore, people have become more aware of the effects of chemically derived compounds and are more cautious in their use of conventional synthetic materials due to their effects on health and the environment.…”

Insights into the Role of Biopolymer Aerogel Scaffolds in Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine

“…An aerogel can be defined as a solid, loose, ultra-lightweight, and lucid open porous network, which can be obtained from a variety of precursors, including biopolymers, by removing the pore liquid without affecting the network structure [ 78 ]. The type and concentration of these biopolymers have significant effects on both the porous network of the aerogel on a molecular level and the bulk properties and thus the viability and proliferation of growing cells [ 79 , 80 ].…”

“…Table 2 presents a summary of the literature investigating the biocompatibility and cytotoxicity of some biopolymer tissue engineering scaffolds. However, combining these biomaterials with other inorganic materials or synthetic polymers may reduce their biocompatibility and thus affect the growing of cells [ 80 , 86 ].…”

Cotton Wastes Functionalized Biomaterials from Micro to Nano: A Cleaner Approach for a Sustainable Environmental Application

“…Biopolymers are often processed for bio-medical packaging, anti-microbial materials, biosensing, and tissue engineered applications [87]. Cotton is a typical example of natural fibre, which contains more than 95% cellulose and have been widely used for bio-medical packaging, anti-microbial materials, biosensing, and tissue engineered applications.…”