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@article{206076,
        author = {Anjali Dhanaji Kandekar},
        title = {Formulation and Evaluation of Aloe Vera–Loaded Hydrogel for Burn Wound Management},
        journal = {International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology},
        year = {2026},
        volume = {13},
        number = {2},
        pages = {835-843},
        issn = {2349-6002},
        url = {https://ijirt.org/article?manuscript=206076},
        abstract = {Burn injuries are one of the leading causes of skin damage worldwide and remain a major healthcare concern due to prolonged healing time, severe pain, inflammation, microbial infection, and scar formation. The skin acts as the primary protective barrier of the human body, and burn injuries disrupt this barrier, making the affected area highly susceptible to dehydration and microbial invasion. Therefore, an ideal topical formulation should provide a moist wound environment, prevent microbial contamination, reduce inflammation, relieve pain, and promote rapid tissue regeneration. Conventional burn wound treatments, including creams and ointments, often require repeated application and may not provide prolonged drug retention at the wound site. Consequently, researchers have focused on developing advanced topical drug delivery systems that improve therapeutic efficacy while enhancing patient compliance. Aloe vera is a well-known medicinal plant that has been widely used in traditional as well as modern medicine because of its excellent wound-healing, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and moisturizing properties. The therapeutic activity of Aloe vera is mainly attributed to the presence of acemannan, polysaccharides, glycoproteins, vitamins, amino acids, enzymes, minerals, and phenolic compounds, which stimulate fibroblast proliferation, collagen synthesis, angiogenesis, and epithelial regeneration. These bioactive constituents significantly accelerate wound healing while minimizing inflammation and reducing microbial growth. Hydrogels have emerged as one of the most promising topical drug delivery systems owing to their high-water content, biocompatibility, non-irritant nature, cooling effect, and ability to provide sustained release of therapeutic agents. The incorporation of Aloe vera into a Carbopol 940 hydrogel combines the therapeutic benefits of herbal medicine with the controlled drug release characteristics of hydrogel technology. Such formulations maintain optimum wound hydration, improve drug retention, reduce dressing frequency, and enhance patient comfort. The present study focuses on the formulation and evaluation of an Aloe vera–loaded hydrogel intended for burn wound management using Carbopol 940 as the gelling polymer. The prepared hydrogel will be evaluated for various physicochemical parameters including appearance, pH, viscosity, spread ability, drug content, swelling index, in vitro drug release, antimicrobial activity, stability, and burn wound-healing potential. The developed formulation is expected to demonstrate acceptable physicochemical properties, sustained release of bioactive compounds, enhanced antimicrobial activity, accelerated tissue regeneration, and improved wound-healing efficacy. Therefore, an Aloe vera–loaded hydrogel may serve as a safe, effective, economical, and patient-friendly topical formulation for the management of burn wounds.},
        keywords = {Aloe vera, Hydrogel, Burn wound, Carbopol 940, Wound healing, Topical drug delivery, Acemannan, Antimicrobial activity, Sustained drug release.},
        month = {July},
        }