Smart colorimetric wound dressing for real-time infection detection and monitoring

Wound infection remains a major clinical challenge, leading to delayed healing, prolonged hospitalization, and increased healthcare costs. Conventional wound dressings provide limited protection and lack the ability to offer real-time information on infection status, often resulting in delayed intervention and excessive antibiotic use. In response, smart wound dressings have been developed as responsive platforms that integrate sensing and therapeutic functions. This review summarizes recent advances in smart wound dressings with a focus on colorimetric, electrochemical, and fluorescence-based biosensing strategies incorporated into hydrogels, nanofibers, and stimuli-responsive polymeric matrices. Key mechanisms for infection detection, including pH variation, bacterial enzymes, metabolites, and reactive oxygen species, are discussed alongside representative material designs. The advantages and limitations of each sensing modality are critically compared, highlighting the simplicity and visual accessibility of colorimetric systems, the high sensitivity of electrochemical sensors, and the molecular specificity of fluorescence-based approaches. Despite significant progress, clinical translation remains limited by challenges related to long-term biocompatibility, scalable manufacturing, and regulatory validation. Future developments are expected to focus on multiplexed biosensing, integration with adaptive therapeutic release, and AI-assisted signal interpretation. Such next-generation theranostic wound dressings hold promise for enabling real-time infection monitoring, personalized treatment, and more effective wound management.