Biofilms are complex microbial communities that have a critical function in many natural ecosystems, industrial settings as well as in recurrent and chronic infections. Biofilms are highly heterogeneous and dynamic assemblages that display complex responses to varying environmental factors, and those properties present substantial challenges for their study and control. In recent years, there has been a growing interest in developing improved biofilm models to offer more precise and comprehensive representations of these intricate systems. However, an objective assessment for ascertaining the ability of biofilms in model systems to recapitulate those in natural environments has been lacking. In this Perspective, we focus on medical biofilms to delve into the current state-of-the-art in biofilm modelling, emphasizing the advantages and limitations of different approaches and addressing the key challenges and opportunities for future research. We outline a framework for quantitatively assessing model accuracy. Ultimately, this Perspective aims to provide a comprehensive and critical overview of medically focused biofilm models, with the intent of inspiring future research aimed at enhancing the biological relevance of biofilm models.

生物膜是复杂的微生物群落，在许多自然生态系统、工业环境以及反复和慢性感染中具有关键功能。生物膜是高度异质和动态的组合，对不同的环境因素表现出复杂的反应，这些特性对其研究和控制提出了巨大的挑战。近年来，人们对开发改进的生物膜模型越来越感兴趣，以提供这些复杂系统的更精确和更全面的表示。然而，缺乏客观评估来确定模型系统中生物膜重现自然环境中生物膜的能力。在本视角中，我们重点关注医用生物膜，深入研究当前生物膜建模的最新技术，强调不同方法的优点和局限性，并解决未来研究的关键挑战和机遇。我们概述了定量评估模型准确性的框架。最终，本视角旨在对以医学为重点的生物膜模型提供全面和批判性的概述，旨在启发旨在增强生物膜模型的生物学相关性的未来研究。