GTÜ Faculty of Engineering Department of Bioengineering Dr. Lecturer Member Cansu Ülker Turan developed a project titled ‘Production of Polyvinyl Alcohol Based Wound Dressing Containing Quercetin Loaded Chitosan Nanoparticles’ with the contributions of graduate student Betül Özer. The project aims to eliminate the risk of complications and infection that occur as a result of prolonged post-operative wound healing process. The product, which is still under development, aims to be applied in one go after surgery, eliminating the need for dressing changes.
‘WE DEVELOPED THE PROJECT TO BE AN ALTERNATIVE TO TRADITIONAL METHODS’
Providing information about the project, Dr. Cansu Ülker Turan: “The healing process of surgical wounds can be long. Especially in diabetic patients, this process may take longer and the wounds may become chronic. Prolonging the wound healing process brings the risk of infection. We developed this project to remedy this situation and be an alternative to traditional dressing methods.
WORKLOAD WILL DECREASE
In the traditional dressing method, the dressing must be removed at regular intervals and a treatment must be applied. This situation can increase the workload of both healthcare professionals and patient relatives, and at the same time, it causes the patient to become worn out in the postoperative period or causes them to suffer again during the dressing change.
BIOCOMPATIBLE WOUND DRAWING
“To prevent this situation, we aimed to obtain a biocompatible wound dressing that can be applied all at once and can release the active ingredient that we will use on the wound for extended periods in a controlled manner,” he said.
‘WE AIM TO DESIGN A COVER THAT CAN PROVIDE TREATMENT ON THE WOUND’
Explaining the content of the research, Turan said, “It is planned to obtain powder particles of the active component of quercetin from chitosan polymer, which is widely found in nature and isolated from the shells of crustaceans, and integrate them into these powder particles, and it is aimed to obtain a nano system that releases the active component in a controlled manner.
“We aim to design a wound dressing that can provide treatment on the wound by incorporating these nano systems into films made of polyvinyl alcohol, a biocompatible and synthetic polymer.”