Role of collagen in wound management

Aravindan Rangaraj is Clinical Research Fellow; Keith Harding is Head of Section of Wound Healing; David Leaper is Visiting Professor; all at Department of Dermatology and Wound Healing, School of Medicine, Cardiff University, Cardiff Collagen is structurally and functionally a key protein of the extracellular matrix which is also involved in scar formation during the healing of connective tissues. Many collagen dressings have been developed to enhance wound repair, particularly of non-infected, chronic, indolent skin ulcers. The use of collagen dressings is supported by relatively sparse and insufficient scientific data. This review identifies the supporting evidence for the use of the dressings which are available, often with widely different claimed advantages and modes of action, and considers future developments and assessment of collagen dressings.