Development of cellulose-based films containing salicylic acid for wound dressing applications: Fabrication, properties and in vitro assessment

A wound dressing is important to ensure an efficient healing process while protecting the wound area. This research study combined 2-hydroxyethyl cellulose (2HEC)—an etherified cellulose derivative with salicylic acid (SA) to develop a single layer and investigate the 2HEC viability as wound dressing material. Nine different samples with different compositions of SA, from 5 wt.% to 40 wt.% (with an interval of 5 wt.%) and one control sample without adding SA were prepared via the solution casting method. The 2HEC-SA films were studied regarding the effects of SA composition on antimicrobial properties ( Staphylococcus aureus) via the well-diffusion method. Additionally, degradability, mechanical properties, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) of 2HEC-SA films have also been tested. The strongest antimicrobial effect of 2HEC-SA film was obtained at 40 wt.% with a 16 mm inhibition zone diameter. There was a noticeable decreasing weight loss pattern in the degradation test and the tensile strength of 2HEC-SA film when the composition of salicylic acid is increased. 2HEC-SA film changes phases from amorphous to crystalline starting at 25 wt.% of salicylic acid as seen through XRD, while FTIR shows that complexation of 2HEC and salicylic acid occurred at 1050 cm⁻¹.