Preparation, characterization and evaluation of glycerol plasticized chitosan/PVA blends for burn wounds

Abstract Chitosan like natural polymers have been widely used in burn wound management. Novel low molecular weight chitosan-PVA soft membranes have been studied for antibacterial and wound healing properties. The effectiveness of antibacterial activity was carried against bacterial pathogens while wound healing nature of chitosan was conducted in second degree burns on rabbits as model animal. Rabbits were divided into three groups; control untreated, treated with commercial Fusidic acid (Fu-A) cream and chitosan-PVA membranes. Low molecular weight chitosan showed significant antibacterial property towards bacterial pathogens. Wound healing experiments on second degree burn exhibited chitosan as significant wound healing agent for wound dressings. In morphological studies, normal growth of epidermis was observed and chitosan exhibited more effective for wound healing. Morphological studies also showed that chitosan wound dressings accelerated the granule and fibrous connective tissues formation. Physical characteristics of chitosan-PVA membranes were evaluated by water uptake capacity, SEM analysis, mechanical and water barrier studies.