A new, low-cost wound dressing developed by University of Wisconsin–Madison engineers could dramatically speed up healing in a surprising way.
The method leverages energy generated from a patient’s own body motions to apply gentle electrical pulses at the site of an injury.
In rodent tests, the dressings reduced healing times to a mere three days compared to nearly two weeks for the normal healing process.
“We were surprised to see such a fast recovery rate,” says Xudong Wang, a professor of materials science and engineering at UW–Madison. “We suspected that the devices would produce some effect, but the magnitude was much more than we expected.”
Read more at University of Wisconsin-Madison
Image: Materials science and engineering professor Xudon Wang fits a new wound dressing around the wrist of graduate student Yin Long. The device stimulates healing using electricity generated from the body's natural motions. (Credit: UW-Madison photo by Sam Million-Weaver)