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Arthur T Knackerbracket has found the following story:

A combined team of researchers from Boston University and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, also in Boston, has published a paper in the journal Angewandte Chemie describing a new type of hydrogel they have developed for use as a bandage for burn patients—one that can be removed by applying another liquid rather than by cutting, as is done with conventional bandages.

Everyone knows that it hurts when your skin is burned, but few people ever have to undergo the excruciatingly painful experience of having bandages replaced after a serious burn—a process called debridement because it involves cutting healthy skin around the burn site—and worse, it must be done over and over while the skin heals. Doctors and patients agree that bandage removal is almost as painful as the initial burn …

A hydrogel, as its name implies, is a gel that has water as its liquid component. … They report that the hydrogel is also able to remove excess fluid from the wound and maintains a highly humid environment that is conducive to healing.

Thus far, the researchers have only tested their hydrogel on rats with skin burns—such tests so far have proven to be successful, they report—the gel has remained in place and protected the wound and has proven to be easily removable. More tests will have to be done, of course, to ensure that the gel is safe for humans, but the team is optimistic—they hope to launch clinical trials within the next two years.

An abstract is available: DOI: 10.1002/anie.201604827

Original Submission