Synthetic Biomaterials for Skin Tissue Engineering
There is a great need for skin substitutes in medicine today, especially in the treatment of burns and other acute skin injuries. The "ideal" skin substitute is still to come. Over the past decades, efforts have been directed toward fabricating tissue engineered skin reconstitution therapies, many of which have a synthetic component. A wide variety of synthetic materials were tested as either skin replacements or supporting scaffolds for a multitude of biologic components. As a result, several patents were issued claiming the manufacture of "artificial skin." Additionally, commercial skin substitutes were introduced into the market, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. This is a broad field within regenerative medicine that has great potential for novel outcomes. The ultimate goal is to be able to produce an "off the shelf" product that mimics uninjured skin, with functionally and aesthetically accepted results.