**8. Summary**

**6.3. Design consideration**

180 Non-woven Fabrics

transmission characteristics.

**7. Future study**

outlooks could be as follows:

structure for maximum performance.

Several inferences can be drawn based on the above results of needle-punched padding:

padding to get bigger pore size that is more suitable for faster spreading.

**•** Padding materials should be made as isotropic as possible, for any anisotropy will lead to behaviour variations at different directions, thus causing non-uniform pressure perform‐ ance and less effective fluid absorption or transmission properties in certain directions. **•** It is recommended that padding with more porosity and larger pore size could help in better management of liquid exudates, air or moisture exchange. To achieve that the mass per unit area and needling density of the nonwoven has to be decreased which results in more porosity. This will accelerate the evaporation and thereby prevent excess moisture buildup. Moreover, fibres with higher linear density should be selected for the preparation of

**•** In general practice, a heavier or thicker padding is recommended in order to obtain maximum pressure reduction especially at critical regions over bony prominences such as tibia or fibula. However, a heavier padding will be more obstructive in liquid flow. So, a balance should be made to get optimum pressure performance with good transport/

All the above points should be taken into consideration to design or develop suitable padding

Padding is critical in compression management; it serves several functions including pressure or comfort management. Padding can have different fibrous materials or structure due to which it can have different mechanical responses while it is being used. Understanding of all these parameters is essential to have improved understanding of the role of textile material or structure for the designing or engineering of optimised products. This chapter introduces the structure–property relationship of nonwoven padding. However, there exist several gaps in the literature which should be systematically examined for further improvement. Some future

**1.** All the above description is based on the single padding layer. However, the padding is just one of the parts of the multi-layer compression system. The system has multiple layers of different fabrics once wrapped over the limb. These include cohesive, padding, compression and wound layers. Each of these layers performs a different role or function. The performance of overall assemblies should also be assessed for better judgement. **2.** Padding bandage lies underneath the bandage that applies significant amount of interface pressure in the range from 10 to 50 mmHg to the leg. Under external compression, the porosity or indeed the wicking performance of the padding will change significantly; so it is expected that the liquid transport or other transmission behaviour of the same padding material will vary when exposed to different levels of normal compression.

This chapter introduces the basics of a medical problem related to venous disorders and related compression modalities. The need and role of different fibrous materials in compression management are presented. More focus is given in describing the critical functions of the padding. Padding is used for the pressure redistribution on the limb. Furthermore, it helps to ensure proper comfort to the wearer due to proper management of heat, moisture, air, liquid, etc. Herein, the nonwoven paddings have been evaluated for the compression and different comfort properties including air permeability, moisture transmission, heat flow and liquid transport. The importance of different nonwovens and their structures are reviewed, which could affect padding performance. Based on the observed results, it has been recommended that padding with more porosity and larger pore size results in more pressure absorption and good transmission (air/moisture/liquid). Padding with low mass per unit area and needling density results in more porosity and therefore can help in faster transport of fluids, air or moisture to a larger area. Moreover, fibres with higher linear density should be selected for the preparation of padding to get bigger pore size, which is more suitable for faster transmis‐ sion and more pressure absorption. This can further help in deciding the optimum structure or material for an ideal product. Some useful theoretical insights are also provided to relate the structure–property relationship to access different padding performance using model parameters. In conclusion, this chapter could serve as a complete package to readers regarding nonwoven product development and optimization. Some future goals are also listed, de‐ manding more innovative solutions or approaches to overcome the limitations of the existing problems, and exploiting the existing features and capacity of nonwoven padding.
