BOSTON, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Two researchers
at Shriners Children's Boston
have created a revolutionary new gel that can help alleviate pain
for second-degree burn survivors during dressing changes. Learning
about the anxiety and pain that many pediatric burn patients
experienced when it was time for a dressing change, Dr. Aslihan
Gokaltun, Ph.D., principal investigator, decided to find a way to
make the process less scary and painful. She and associate
investigator, O. Berk Usta, Ph.D., the Associate Professor of
Surgery & Bioengineering at Harvard
Medical School, began a hydrogel research study in 2020 and
have now bioengineered a first-of-its-kind supramolecular hybrid
hydrogel to help alleviate the stress and pain of the treatment
process for burn survivors.
"After a child has experienced a traumatic burn, the last thing
we want to do as a medical staff is cause that child more pain and
fear while treating their injuries," Dr. Usta said. "While doing
research, the biggest thing clinicians agreed upon was that burn
dressings should be easily removable and pain-free and our goal was
to create a product that would achieve this. Other types
of hydrogels can adhere to the wound, and frequent dressing
changes can sometimes end up being extremely painful while also
delaying healing. The hydrogel we created is unique because it can
rapidly dissolve before the treatment process begins, ensuring it
doesn't stick to the wounds."
Their new biomaterial drastically cuts the dressing change time
and the amount of pain a patient is in and is even considered an
alternative to heavy medication and sedation for children.
Currently, dressing changes average one to three hours. The newly
developed hydrogel can be rapidly dissolved in around five minutes
by way of a solution that breaks down its molecular structure and
does not affect the skin around the wound. It also decreases the
risk of wound infections, life-threatening sepsis, and multi-organ
failure.
"The great thing about this new hydrogel is that it allows us to
use less anesthesia, pain relievers, and opioids," explained Dr.
Gokaltun. "It took some time to develop but we are so grateful that
we now have a product that will potentially benefit so many
children and make their burn treatment a more positive
experience."
For more information about the new hydrogel research, go to
Shriners Children's website at www.shrinerschildrens.org.
View original content to download
multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/shriners-childrens-boston-researchers-develop-new-technology-to-help-lessen-pain-for-burn-patients-302183547.html
SOURCE Shriners Children's