Personalized and Programmable Microneedle Dressing for Promoting Wound Healing.

Abstract

Microneedle (MN) dressings, with the ability of transdermal drug delivery, have played an essential role in the field of wound healing. However, patients may still feel uncomfortable when sensitive unhealing wounds are pieced by strong needles. Here, inspired by the structure of mosquito mouthparts, which possess a fixation part and a liquid-transferring part, we present a novel MN wound dressing with superfine needle tips, personalized pattern design, programmable needle length, and multiple mechanical strengths for intelligent and painless drug delivery. By simply stretching the silicone rubber (Ecoflex) molds before engraving, superfine MNs can be formed in the restored molds. Meanwhile, by utilizing intelligent image recognition, precise treatment for irregular wounds is achieved. Notably, combined with temperature-responsive N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAM) hydrogel and inverse opal (IO) photonic crystals (PCs), a controllable drug release system has been achieved on MN dressings. Moreover, the performance of the MN dressing in facilitating wound recovery has been demonstrated by full-thickness skin wounds of a mouse model. These results indicate that novel personalized and programmable MN wound dressings are of considerable value in the field of wound management.