Recently there has been much interest in creating increadibly thin nano films that could be used instead of stitches during surgery. The hope would be to reduce the invasive nature of operations and overall operation times by negating the need for stitches.

Researchers at the University of Waseda in Tokyo have developed such a nano-sealant film from PLLA (Polylactic acid). It has had proved efficacy in gastric surgery as a replacement for stitching. What is great news is that the tissue beneath the nano-sealant film does not scar.

The nanosheet developed has many interesting attributes. It was made with high adhesivness, transparency and high flexibility all at the same time. This makes them ideal for surgical procedures.

The nanosheet is still many years away from clinical trials but it is expected that the nanosheets could be used in many types of surgey including plastic and endoscopic surgery.

 Source: Nanowerk

Paper: Wiley

A skin healing gel incorperating many compounds has been developed by a group of 5 leading UK plastic surgeons. The healing gel is named ‘HEAL’ and was origianlly created to aid recov3ery by reducing inflammation after sugery aiming to reduce recovery times, the gel has also been proven to treat many everyday injuries such as bruising, sprains and sunburn e.t.c.  Heal uses a method of healing that combines three main factors. It soothes the closed wound with Amica, Haloxyl and Glistin, which reduce the heat sensation and discomfort. Collaxyl protein fractions are used to repair damage and to promote cellular repair. Scar healing is optomised with the use of silicone.

Heal has been tested for the last 2 years by the firm in clinical practive with the feedback indicationg:

94% of patients reporting that HEAL was very soothing to bruised areas
82% of patients reporting that HEAL reduced swelling after surgery
85% of patients reporting that HEAL highly effectively reduced post-surgery bruising
97% of patients would continue to use HEAL in the future and recommend the product to others

For more information about the product and some of the science behind it: www.healgel.com

A newly developed paint containing silver nanoparticles has been produced, which has anti-bacterial properties. It has been postulated for many years that silver can have anti-bacterial effects. It would seem that silver nanoparticles are even more potent as an anti-bacterial agent then normal silver coatings. If this were to be environmentally viable it would be ideal to deal with reducing bacterial infections especially those from multiple resistance strains such as MRSA. Speculation is rife on the internet about this new product in the making wether it will work as planned. There is speculation that bacteria may have the capacity to become resistant to the silver coating and thus negate the products effect relatively quickly. There are concerns about wether the coating could wipe out bacteria from environmentally important niches that could impact greatly on the environment.