ABSTRACT
Polymers that respond to environmental conditions are of increasing interest because of their potential applications in biomedical fields. The polymers that undergo physical or chemical changes due to change(s) in the environment are stimulus polymers. This entry outlines the structural phenomena and some properties of stimulus/stimuli-responsive polymers (SRPs). Various temperature, pH, electro and light-sensitive SRPs with their health care applications in fields like drug delivery, tissue engineering, artificial muscles, and wound dressing are also discussed. A special emphasis is given to hydrogels as stimuli-responsive polymeric materials (SRPMs) and their preparation by using a radiation method. Hydrogels are one of the most used radiation-induced SRPMs and can be used widely in various fields of biomedical science. Due to the huge probability of successful application of SRPs in various health care fields, their demand is increasing day by day and it has many opportunities and challenges in biomedical science.
