In situ forming injectable hydrogels for drug delivery and wound repair

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

• Level A · Stronger Clinical Evidence
• Level B · Emerging clinical evidence with positive signals
• Level C · Early human research exploring benefits
• Level D · Scientific groundwork from lab and animal studies
• Emerging · Emerging topic under active research

Abstract (original English)

Hydrogels have been utilized in regenerative applications for many decades because of their biocompatibility and similarity in structure to the native extracellular matrix. Initially, these materials were formed outside of the patient and implanted using invasive surgical techniques. However, advances in synthetic chemistry and materials science have now provided researchers with a library of techniques whereby hydrogel formation can occur in situ upon delivery through standard needles. This provides an avenue to minimally invasively deliver therapeutic payloads, fill complex tissue defects, and induce the regeneration of damaged portions of the body. In this review, we highlight these injectable therapeutic hydrogel biomaterials in the context of drug delivery and tissue regeneration for skin wound repair.

Evidence level

Evidence from laboratory and animal studies provides groundwork for understanding mechanisms and potential before human studies continue.

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