Alginate Wound Dressings

Alginate dressings are made from natural polysaccharide fibers that are derived from processed seaweed.

Alginate wound dressings.

What is an alginate dressing. Alginate dressings maintain a physiologically moist microenvironment that promotes healing and the formation of granulation tissue. Biodegradable alginate dressings made from seaweed date back at least fifty years and commercially available alginate has been available since 1983. Alginate dressings are highly absorbent and suitable for use on exuding wounds and for the promotion of autolytic debridement of debris in very moist wounds.

Alginate dressings also act as a haemostatic but caution is needed because blood clots can cause the dressing to adhere to the wound surface. Calcium alginate dressings are a strong versatile and natural wound care dressing typically applied to diabetic wounds venous wounds full thickness burns split thickness graft donor sites pressure ulcers cavity wounds and chronic ulcers. This type of dressing is used for dermal wounds that produce exudate meaning that they ooze bodily fluids such as blood plasma mucus or pus. These dressings are made primarily of seaweed derivatives and the fibers are spun into ropes or sheets.

An alginate wound dressing contains sodium and calcium derived from seaweed and come in the form of flat dressings. Alginate dressings are absorbent wound care products that contain sodium and calcium fibers derived from seaweed. Alginate dressings are non occlusive to semi occlusive highly absorbent and made to manage moderate to large amounts of exudate figure 21 5. These non woven non adhesive dressings are highly absorbent soft and conformable.

Alginate fibres trapped in a wound are readily biodegraded. They come in the form of flat dressings that can be placed over open ulcers and rope dressings that are used for packing the wound which absorb fluids and promote healing with pressure ulcers diabetic foot ulcers or venous ulcers. Often used on wounds with heavy exudate the alginates used to produce these dressings are made from a variety of seaweeds harvested around the world. Alginates can be rinsed away with saline irrigation so removal of the dressing does not interfere with healing granulation tissue.

They are easy to pack tuck or apply over wounds of irregular shapes. As the alginate absorbs fluid it is converted to a gel that provides moisture to the wound bed. They can also be used on dry wounds when combined with a sterile saline solution. A calcium alginate dressing is a topical wound dressing made with the ingredient alginate also called algin which is a highly absorbent substance that is extracted from the cell walls of brown seaweed.