From passive to bioactive: Engineering a smart Band-Aid for complex wound care

Conventional Band-Aid faces significant limitations including limited exudate absorption capacity, non-biodegradability, and lack of active therapeutic properties, restricting their efficacy in complex wound management. In this work, we present a multifunctional Band-Aid engineered via a biodegradable cryogel pad (CryoPad) platform, specifically designed to overcome the major shortcomings of traditional Band-Aid. The CryoPad was fabricated using poly(ethylene glycol) carboxyl reactive ester and arginine-modified bovine serum albumin (ABSA) via ice-templating, creating oriented interconnected microchannels for enhanced fluid absorption and vapor transmission. Zinc peroxide nanoparticles (ZnO₂ NPs) were incorporated to enable pH-responsive nitric oxide (NO) release, providing synergistic antibacterial activity under acidic wound conditions while promoting tissue regeneration through controlled NO delivery. In vitro studies have confirmed responsive antibacterial properties, excellent antioxidant properties, enhanced angiogenesis and accelerated cell migration, and complete biodegradability within four weeks. In vivo evaluations using rat liver hemorrhage and full-thickness skin wound models, as well as porcine skin wound studies, revealed significantly improved hemostatic efficiency, faster wound closure, increased collagen deposition, and superior tissue regeneration compared to conventional Band-Aid. This multifunctional CryoPad-based Band-Aid represents a significant advancement in wound care technology, offering substantial potential for clinical translation across a broad range of medical applications.