Hydrogel wound dressings exhibiting reduced fiber losses in use

1. A wound dressing comprising:

a water-absorbent fabric comprising at least 10 wt. % of hydrogel-forming absorbent fibers based on the dry weight of the fabric; and

an adhesion-resistant, water-permeable wound contacting surface textile layer that is substantially continuously bonded to at least one surface of said fabric, wherein the fabric comprises at least 10 wt. % based on the dry weight of the fabric of substantially non-water-absorbent textile fibers and wherein the fabric comprises a mixture of the hydrogel-forming fibers and the substantially non-water-absorbent textile fibers, and wherein at least a fraction of the non-water-absorbent fibers are coated with silver.

2. A wound dressing according to claim 1 , wherein said adhesion resistant surface textile layer has been formed by treating a surface layer of the fabric with a lubricant.

3. A wound dressing according to claim 2 , wherein the lubricant comprises a silicone compound or a fluorocarbon.

4. A wound dressing according to claim 2 , wherein the lubricant comprises a substance selected from the group consisting of medically acceptable lipids, mineral oils, mucopolysaccharides, and mixtures thereof.

5. A wound dressing according to claim 1 , wherein said adhesion resistant surface layer comprises a nonwoven textile web having a basis weight of from 2 to 100 g/m 2 that is continuously bonded to said surface of the fabric.

6. A wound dressing according to claim 5 , wherein said nonwoven textile web comprises thermofusible fibers, and the textile web has been bonded to the water-absorbent textile web by melt bonding.

7. A wound dressing according to claim 1 , which is sterile and packaged in a microorganism-impermeable container.