Time heals - We may speed the process

Using methods originally developed in the micro-electronics industry, research at the University is helping to develop special wound dressings which speed up the healing process in human tissue and reduce scarring.

Dr Stephen Britland of the School of Pharmacy has received a £76,000 grant from the Wellcome Trust, the world's largest medical research charity, after noticing that in unborn babies wounds appeared to heal faster and with virtually no scarring, leading him to surmise that faster healing reduces the risk of permanent scarring. He then needed to find ways to hasten the speed at which natural healing takes place.

Which is where the methods developed by the micro-electronics industry came in: Dr Britland is re-engineering the structure of the surface of the tissue which surrounds damaged areas to see whether he can accelerate the movement of key cells and therefore reduce scarring. This, he says, may lead to the development of 'smart dressings' to treat skin and other tissue injuries.

This would, he believes, help patients who suffer emotionally from scarring; it would also cut bills for the health service since extensive scarring can need costly repeated surgery.

[Next] [Prev]

University - Public Relations - Annual Reports - 2000 Contents - Research

University of Bradford, Bradford, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom

Content last updated 17 May 2000
HTML last changed 12 July 2000