Abstract
Skin wounds are a global public health concern, causing around three hundred thousand lives yearly and disabling millions more. More than 95% of these injuries occur in emerging countries where access to health services is limited, and resources are scarce. Variables such as depth, cause, infection, and/or chronicity determine the outcome of skin wounds and whether they hinder the body´s natural healing process. In order to treat deep, chronic and/or complicated skin wounds, various treatments have been developed. Widely used traditional techniques such as asepsis, debridement, and surgery are aimed to prevent further damage and aid scarring but have many disadvantages, including low efficiency results, high healing time rates, and elevated costs. Alternative and novel strategies, such as bioactive dressings and regenerative medicine, are intended to achieve functional and aesthetic tissue recovery while minimizing the rejection risk in other techniques like skin flaps and grafts. The present review outlines the key skin characteristics, a general description of the more common types of wounds and their incidence, and tissue engineered strategies commonly used for skin tissue regeneration.