Bioabsorbable polymer optical waveguides for deep-tissue photomedicine
Sedat Nizamoglu1,2, Malte C Gather1,3, Matjaž Humar1,4
1Wellman Center for Photomedicine, Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital, 65 Landsdowne Street UP-5, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA.
Nature Communications
|January 20, 2016
Summary
New biodegradable polymer devices enable long-term light delivery for deep tissue treatments. This breakthrough in photomedicine expands the reach of light-based therapies, such as photochemical tissue bonding, for enhanced medical applications.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Photonics in Medicine
- Materials Science
Background:
- Photonics has advanced medical treatments, but light penetration depth limits clinical applications.
- Conventional optical fibers require removal, restricting long-term use in deep tissues.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop implantable, biodegradable light-delivery devices for deep tissue photomedicine.
- To demonstrate the efficacy of these devices for photochemical tissue bonding (PTB).
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of implantable light-delivery devices using biocompatible and biodegradable polymers.
- Utilized comb-shaped planar waveguides for efficient light distribution.
- Demonstrated application in photochemical tissue bonding (PTB) on porcine skin.
Main Results:
- Achieved full-thickness wound closure (>10 mm) in porcine skin using the novel waveguides.
- Extended the treatable tissue area by approximately 10-fold compared to conventional PTB.
- The biodegradable waveguides were gradually resorbed by the tissue, eliminating the need for removal.
Conclusions:
- Implantable biodegradable waveguides offer a new paradigm for long-term light delivery in deep tissues.
- This technology significantly enhances the capabilities of photomedicine, particularly for procedures like PTB.
- The findings pave the way for innovative light-based therapies targeting previously inaccessible tissues.
