Dynamic‐Network‐Based Self‐Healing Hydrogel Sensors for Strain Monitoring in Hemiplegia Rehabilitation: A Review

ABSTRACT

Rehabilitation assessment plays a critical role in post‐stroke care for hemiplegic patients, directly influencing the design and adjustment of personalized rehabilitation programs. However, traditional assessment methods are often limited in terms of flexibility, sensitivity, and accuracy. Recent advancements in self‐healing hydrogels, which utilize dynamic and reversible non‐covalent interactions, have introduced new possibilities for next‐generation wearable biosensors. These materials exhibit excellent flexibility, biocompatibility, and self‐repairing capabilities, rendering them particularly suitable for long‐term, high‐fidelity motion monitoring and functional assessment in rehabilitation settings. This review systematically explores the key mechanisms underlying the self‐healing capabilities of hydrogels, including hydrogen bonding, hydrophobic interactions, host‐guest interactions, ionic interactions, and metal–ligand interactions. Furthermore, the latest developments in self‐healing hydrogel‐based strain sensors, categorized into piezoelectric, capacitive, and resistive types, are critically evaluated in terms of their respective potential applications and performance of these sensors, enhancing their clinical applicability in rehabilitation medicine.