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Tailoring crystallinity for hemocompatible and durable PEEK cardiovascular implants
Mary Jialu Chen1, Georgios A Pappas1, Daniele Massella1
1Laboratory of Composite Materials and Adaptive Structures, ETH Zürich, Switzerland.
Biomaterials Advances
|February 2, 2023
Summary
Enhancing polyetheretherketone (PEEK) crystallinity improves hemocompatibility by reducing platelet adhesion and hemolysis. This simple method optimizes PEEK for cardiovascular devices.
Area of Science:
- Biomaterials Science
- Polymer Chemistry
- Cardiovascular Engineering
Background:
- Polymers offer advantages over traditional heart valve materials.
- Polyetheretherketone (PEEK) shows promise but faces hemocompatibility challenges.
- Current hemocompatibility solutions for PEEK are often complex.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of polymer crystallinity on PEEK hemocompatibility.
- To evaluate amorphous, semi-crystalline, and crystalline PEEK, plus a carbon fiber composite (CFPEEK).
- To determine if crystallinity can be a simple method to enhance PEEK performance.
Main Methods:
- Synthesized and characterized amorphous, semi-crystalline, and crystalline PEEK samples.
- Investigated a highly crystalline carbon fiber (CF)/PEEK composite (CFPEEK).
- Assessed functional group density, platelet adhesion, hemolysis, and thrombin generation.
Main Results:
- Higher PEEK crystallinity correlated with increased surface carbonyl groups.
- Increased crystallinity significantly reduced platelet adhesion, hemolysis, and thrombin generation.
- CFPEEK demonstrated excellent hemocompatibility and mechanical properties.
Conclusions:
- Tailoring PEEK crystallinity is an effective strategy to improve hemocompatibility.
- Crystallinity control offers a simple method to enhance both hemocompatibility and mechanical properties.
- CFPEEK's properties support its use in novel cardiovascular device designs.
