. 2018 Jun 5;15(5):749–755. doi: 10.1111/iwj.12922

Table 1.

Classification of surfactants and their beneficial effects on wound healing

Classification	Properties	Beneficial effects	Reference
Ionic	Anionic: Dissociate in water into an amphiphilic anion and a cation	Enhance activity of antimicrobials through electrostatic stabilisation	30
			41
	Cationic: Dissociate in water into an amphiphilic cation and an anion	Stabilise elution of antimicrobial, preventing cytotoxicity	41
		Stabilise elution of antimicrobial, preventing cytotoxicity	24, 25
		Prevention of protein aggregation and aiding of refolding of denatured proteins
	Zwiterionic: Anionic and cationic dissociations	Reduction in inflammation
	Zwiterionic: Anionic and cationic dissociations	Aid in debridement of wounds
Non‐Ionic	Covalently bonded hydrophilic and hydrophobic copolymers		21, 35, 44, 48
		Increase rate of wound closure	21, 35, 44, 48
			5, 6
			21, 35, 38