A wound dressing that does not need changing: A wood gel revolutionises wound care

However, a material being local and natural is not a decisive factor when making care management decisions. In the operating theatre, the focus is not on the material's environmental friendliness, but rather on patient friendliness, says Kiukas.

"We always try to find the most appropriate and cost-effective solution for each patient".

Hospitals have very limited resources, and materials and equipment are selected according to what works best and reduces the need for further treatment.

Wound dressings are used for the treatment of skin graft donor site wounds. The dressing is cut to the appropriate size and placed over the wound. The dressing is not changed periodically, instead the wound is allowed to heal under the disposable dressing.

The advantage of a wound dressing made from nanocellulose is that it can cover large areas of skin, according to Kiukas. There may not be healthy skin at the site of the skin graft to which the adhesive surface of a conventional dressing could adhere. It is important that the dressing stays in place.

"If you pull on the dressing before the wound has healed, even healthy skin can easily tear. This can affect the healing of the wound and cause the donor site to become inflamed".

Moving away from animal-based raw materials

Wound patients are a large patient group in healthcare, and wound treatment costs hundreds of millions of euros in treatment expenses in Finland every year. A dressing that comes off the wound on its own and potentially reduces the number of infections can help reduce the workload of the health service. 

"Having products that can save time frees up nursing time for other tasks", says Kaija Ojala from UPM Biomedicals.

UPM Biomedicals, which develops and manufactures wood-based biomedical products, is also interested in the many other possibilities of nanocellulose. In the future, nanocellulose could be combined with, for example, medicines or cells to help a specific area of the body heal faster. 

A locally administered medicine could reduce strain on the liver from ingesting medicines and ensure that the medicine goes where it's supposed to. The potential of nanocellulose in the development of such therapies is massive, according to both Yliperttula and Ojala.

However, developing new products is a long and multi-stage process, Ojala points out.

"Pre-clinical studies take two years, clinical trials another two years and a further two years to obtain a CE marking".

Another argument in favour of applications using nanocellulose is that they come from forests and not from humans or animals. European and US authorities are working to prevent the use of materials of animal origin. For example, the collagen commonly used in wound dressings is animal-based. The authorities' aim is based not only on animal conservation, but also on the will of the patients. 

"Patients may be interested in where the substances that go into their skin come from", says Ojala. No animals need to be sacrificed to make nanocellulose. It has also been found to be compatible with human tissues so that the body does not develop a rejection reaction. 

Many patients ask whether birch-derived nanocellulose can cause an allergic reaction in someone allergic to birch. "It can't", Ojala replies. The properties of birch are almost completely transformed when it is processed into nanocellulose.

The healing power of wood can therefore be relied on even in the 2020s.