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New objective measurement to characterize the porosity of textile implants
Author(s) -
Mühl Thomas,
Binnebösel Marcel,
Klinge Uwe,
Goedderz Thomas
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
journal of biomedical materials research part b: applied biomaterials
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.665
H-Index - 108
eISSN - 1552-4981
pISSN - 1552-4973
DOI - 10.1002/jbm.b.30859
Subject(s) - porosity , materials science , textile , composite material , stiffness , biocompatibility , elasticity (physics) , biomedical engineering , metallurgy , medicine
The inflammatory and fibrotic intensity of a foreign body reaction largely depends on the porosity of the implanted material. Furthermore, the size of the pore and its geometry define the capability to allow tissue ingrowth. We present an image analysis system, which allows objectifying in two dimensions the pores' structure and geometry of textile fabrics, that are used to reinforce the abdominal wall or pelvic floor. The porosity of the textile is measured at four samples with differences in structure. The porosity decreases markedly if foreign body response is considered, leading to the definition of an “effective porosity”. Because of the high stiffness of the polymer fibers the elasticity of textile implants usually result from a deformation of the pores, leading to a marked reduction of the effective porosity if a mechanical stress is applied. Further in vivo studies have to investigate, whether the preservation of a high effective porosity under stress may help to improve biocompatibility of textile implants. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater 2008