Effect of healing on compliance of porous Dacron grafts

The effects of tissue ingrowth on the compliance of porous Dacron grafts were studied in 8 mm external-velour warp-knit Dacron grafts implanted in the canine descending thoracic aorta. The compliance of these grafts was measured before implantation and after implant periods of two weeks and one, two, four, and six months. Compliance, which initially was 0.043 +/- 0.008% mm Hg, decreased less than 10% after implantation (no statistical difference at p less than 0.05). No anastomotic neointimal hyperplasia was observed. Although the total thickness of the graft wall increased two- to three-fold after implantation, the benign healing process observed in this study had very little influence on graft compliance followed to six months.