The effect of spin finishes on hydrolysis rates of medical grade polyester.

PURPOSE

The rate of alkaline hydrolysis of medical grade poly(ethylene terephthalate) of grey, scoured, and solvent extracted samples have been studied to understand their degradation behavior during surface modification which is used to produce antithrombus grafts.

METHODS

The changes in properties were examined using weight loss, mechanical properties loss and infrared spectrum.

RESULTS

It was found that the rate of hydrolysis of grey sample was always slower than the scoured, and solvent extracted samples. The slower rate of degradation of the grey polyester is attributed to the presence of spin finishes in the polyester biomaterials. Further, different scouring methods also gave samples with varying rates of hydrolysis. This is due to the different spin finish removal efficiency of different scouring procedures. The weight loss (%) of the solvent extracted samples were the largest which demonstrated that the solvent extraction technique is perhaps the best to remove spin finish from the polyester.

CONCLUSIONS

Thus, these results serve as foundation for polyester biomaterials which are hydrolyzed before implantation in order to improve the protein binding capabilities to minimize thrombosis.