PURPOSE We evaluated the initial bone-patellar tendon-bone (BPTB) graft fixation strength of biodegradable pins compared with interference screws in anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction using bovine knees. TYPE OF STUDY Biomechanical in vitro study. METHODS Ten BPTB grafts from human donors fixed with 2 biodegradable 2.7-mm pins (Rigid Fix; Ethicon, Mitek Division, Norderstedt, Germany...

BACKGROUND AND STUDY AIMS In patients with Crohn's disease, the idea of biodegradable stents for treatment of bowel strictures with limited effect of endoscopic balloon dilation is tempting and initial results have been promising. The aim of this study was to evaluate the technical and clinical success of biodegradable stents for treatment of inflamed Crohn's strictures refractory to endoscopic...

This review discusses and summarizes the recent developments and advances in the use of biodegradable materials for bone repair purposes. The choice between using degradable and non-degradable devices for orthopedic and maxillofacial applications must be carefully weighed. Traditional biodegradable devices for osteosynthesis have been successful in low or mild load bearing applications. However...

INTRODUCTION This work reports on the development of a biodegradable dual-drug-eluting stent with sequential-like and sustainable drug-release of anti-platelet acetylsalicylic acid and anti-smooth muscle cell (SMC) proliferative paclitaxel. METHODS To fabricate the biodegradable stents, poly-L-lactide strips are first cut from a solvent-casted film. They are rolled onto the surface of a metal...

An aneurysm is a balloon-like bulge in the wall of blood vessels, occurring in major arteries of the heart and brain. Biodegradable polymeric stent-assisted coiling is expected to be the ideal treatment of wide-neck complex aneurysms. This paper presents the development of methods to fabricate and optimally design biodegradable polymeric stents for aneurysms treatment. Firstly, a dispensing-bas...

We developed biodegradable drug-eluting nanofiber-enveloped implants that provided sustained release of vancomycin and ceftazidime. To prepare the biodegradable nanofibrous membranes, poly(D,L)-lactide-co-glycolide and the antibiotics were first dissolved in 1,1,1,3,3,3-hexafluoro-2-propanol. They were electrospun into biodegradable drug-eluting membranes, which were then enveloped on the surfa...

Citric-acid-derived thermally cross-linked biodegradable elastomers (CABEs) have recently received significant attention in various biomedical applications, including tissue-engineering orthopedic devices, bioimaging and implant coatings. However, citric-acid-derived photo-cross-linked biodegradable elastomers are rarely reported. Herein, we report a novel photo-cross-linked biodegradable elast...

This paper completes the model of biodegradation for biodegradable polymers that was previously developed by Wang et al. (Wang Y, Pan J, Han X, Sinka, Ding L. A phenomenological model for the degradation of biodegradable polymers. Biomaterials 2008;29:3393-401). Crystallisation during biodegradation was not considered in the previous work which is the topic of the current paper. For many common...

Hydrogels are widely used in the biomedical field. Their main purposes are either to deliver biological active agents or to temporarily fill a defect until they degrade and are followed by new host tissue formation. However, for this latter application, biodegradable hydrogels are usually not capable to sustain any significant load. The development of biodegradable hydrogels presenting load-bea...

BACKGROUND AND AIM OF THE STUDY The biodegradable ring was recently developed for mitral and tricuspid annuloplasty. The study aim was to assess the histological biocompatibility of the biodegradable ring and orifice area growth in a porcine model. METHODS The smallest (size 16) biodegradable ring was implanted into the tricuspid annulus of 16 juvenile pigs. All animals were followed up by tr...