Evaluation of mechanical biocompatibility of cog threads for prolapse repair

Pelvic floor disorders (PFD), including Pelvic Organ Prolapse (POP), can negatively impact a woman's daily activities and quality of life. POP is a growing concern, with an increasing number of cases each year and significant numbers of women going through surgery to alleviate it. Traditional interventions like the use of mesh implants have certain limitations such as repeated surgeries. An alternative surgical intervention technique using injectable biodegradable cog threads was suggested. The application of Finite element analysis (FEA) to this research allows us to personalize and select suitable POP correction techniques and study the effect of alternative reinforcement techniques. The 3D computational model of the vagina will be used to simulate defect repair using cog threads. To accurately model this, we conducted uniaxial tensile tests on both the polycaprolactone (PCL) cog threads and the sow's vaginal tissues, which mimic human tissue, providing vital data for precise finite element modeling. The study's findings suggest that cog threads may have the potential to provide benefits in the treatment of POP. This study provides a starting point for further research on cog threads as one possible treatment option for POP.