Bioresorbable Suture Anchor Clips for Soft Tissue Wound Repair.

Mesh suture is an emerging technology for closing high-tension soft tissue wounds. However, bulky mesh surgical knots can irritate surrounding tissue and harbor bacteria, leading to an increased risk of infection and palpability. Thus, a degradable knotless anchoring system is needed to secure mesh sutures. Here, novel anchor clip devices are fabricated via continuous liquid interface production (CLIP) three-dimensional (3D) printing using poly(propylene fumarate-co-propylene succinate) (PPFPS) oligomers. Thiol-ene cross-linking yields fully degradable thermoset devices with tunable mechanical properties. For comparison, high-resolution anchor clips are also fabricated via traditional injection molding using poly(l-lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA). The PLGA anchor clips show similar mechanical performance to predicate soft tissue fixation techniques in a benchtop abdominal wall reconstruction model. Both PLGA and PPFPS anchor clips demonstrate satisfactory in vivo biocompatibility in a porcine abdominal implantation model. This work outlines the development of bioresorbable anchor clips for soft tissue fixation and illustrates their potential for clinical translation.

Duke Scholars

Author Vance Garrison Fowler Jr. Medicine, Infectious Diseases

Author Matthew L Becker Chemistry

Author Jeffrey Ira Everitt Pathology