Fabrication of balloon-expandable self-lock drug-eluting polycaprolactone stents using micro-injection molding and spray coating techniques.
The purpose of this report was to develop novel balloon-expandable self-lock drug-eluting poly(ε-caprolactone) stents. To fabricate the biodegradable stents, polycaprolactone (PCL) components were first fabricated by a lab-scale micro-injection molded machine. They were then assembled and hot-spot welded into mesh-like stents of 3 and 5 mm in diameters. A special geometry of the components was designed to self-lock the assembled stents and to resist the external pressure of the blood vessels after being expanded by balloons. Characterization of the biodegradable PCL stents was carried out. PCL stents exhibited comparable mechanical property to that of metallic stents. No significant collapse pressure reduction and weight loss of the stents were observed after being submerged in PBS for 12 weeks. In addition, the developed stent was coated with paclitaxel by a spray coating technique and the release characteristic of the drug was determined by an in vitro elution method. The high-performance liquid chromatography analysis showed that the biodegradable stents could release a high concentration of paclitaxel for more than 60 days. By adopting the novel techniques, we will be able to fabricate biodegradable drug-eluting PCL stents of different sizes for various cardiovascular applications.
Liu
Shih-Jung
SJ
Biomaterials Lab, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Chang Gung University, 259, Wen-Hwa 1st Road, Kwei-San, Tao-Yuan 333, Taiwan. shihjung@mail.cgu.edu.tw
Chiang
Fu-Jun
FJ
Hsiao
Chao-Ying
CY
Kau
Yi-Chuan
YC
Liu
Kuo-Sheng
KS
D020341:Absorbable Implants; D054855:Drug-Eluting Stents; D006801:Humans; D008422:Materials Testing; D011091:Polyesters
D011091:Polyesters; C016240:polycaprolactone