Polymeric meshes for internal sutures with differentiated adhesion on the two sides

Abstract

The aim of this work is to investigate the effects of different plasma treatments on ePTFE abdominal prostheses with the final goal of obtaining a new prosthesis, made of a single strand of ePTFE, with clearly differentiated adhesion properties on the two sides, which should be able to promote tissue ingrowth on one side and prevent post surgical visceral adhesions on the other.

Samples obtained from ePTFE Bard Dulex Meshes have been treated sequentially with three different gases (N₂, O₂ and NH₃) in order to choose the optimal treatment conditions to improve ePTFE wettability. In particular, no modification was induced by N₂ treatment, while the full treatment after the final ammonia gas resulted in the best suitable candidate.

As demonstrated by scanning electron microscopy, AFM analyses and contact angle measurements, ammonia plasma treatment increases ePTFE surface roughness and renders it more hydrophilic, thus promoting adhesion without any alteration of the material’s bulk properties.

The reported results also evidence the possibility to obtain the maximum wettability with a cheap treatment by optimizing plasma exposure time.

As a preliminary cell adhesion study, Swiss 3T3 fibroblasts (mouse, embryo) have been seeded on the treated and untreated materials in order to assess whether there was any difference in terms of cell attachment and spreading. Cells seeded on the ammonia plasma treated material showed a better adhesion and spreading when compared to the untreated material.