Plastically Deformable, Mechanically Strong, and Degradable Polymeric Airway Stents from Sustainable Aliphatic...

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Polymer Chemistry
• Medical Device Engineering

Background:

• Standard airway stents (silicone, metal) have associated morbidities.
• There is a need for advanced bioresorbable airway stents.
• Current fabrication and deployment methods have limitations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a mechanically robust and printable bioresorbable airway stent.
• To establish a novel deployment strategy for these stents.
• To evaluate the cytocompatibility and biodegradability of the new stent material.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of LML triblock copolymers (poly(l-lactide) and poly(γ-methyl-ε-caprolactone)).
• Optimization of polymer viscosity for extrusion-based 3D printing.
• Mechanical testing, including tensile strength and toughness analysis.
• In situ SAXS/WAXS for structural analysis.
• In vivo stent deployment in a porcine model.
• In vitro cytotoxicity and degradation studies.

Main Results:

• LML copolymers demonstrated tunable viscosity for high-resolution 3D printing of airway stents.
• A novel radial dilation deployment strategy induced plastic deformation, enhancing structural integrity.
• Plastically deformed stents showed improved tensile strength and toughness.
• In vivo deployment in a porcine lumen was successful.
• In vitro studies confirmed cytocompatibility and biodegradability.

Conclusions:

• LML triblock copolymers are suitable for fabricating mechanically superior, 3D-printable airway stents.
• The radial dilation deployment strategy is effective for achieving robust stent structure.
• These bioresorbable stents offer promising potential for customizable airway stenting solutions.