Material Safety of Styrene-Block-Ethylene/Butylene-Block-Styrene Copolymers Used for Cardiac Valves: 6-Month In Vivo Results from a Juvenile Sheep Model.

OBJECTIVES

To assess the in vivo 6-month safety of styrene-block-ethylene/butylene-block-styrene (SEBS) block copolymers material used to make cardiac valves.

METHODS

Research-grade mitral valve prototypes made from SEBS29/SEBS20 copolymers (n = 7; 3 with heparin-coating) were implanted in juvenile sheep under cardiopulmonary bypass and kept for 6 months. No vitamin K antagonists were used. Anticoagulation included enoxaparin 1 mg/kg SC twice/day from day 1 until day 120 along with clopidogrel 300 mg once/day with food from day 1 until sacrifice. Safety measures included SEBS-related calcification, degradation, haemolysis, cytotoxicity, clinical pathology (biochemistry, complete blood count, coagulation), structural integrity, damage to surrounding tissue, overall animal health, and device embolization and function.

RESULTS

Surgery was feasible in all cases. Four animals reached the final 180 ± 5 days timepoint, while 1 needed non-SEBS related sacrifice on day 2, 1 suffered non-SEBS related death on day 81, and 1 needed sacrifice on day 169 due to prototype dysfunction. High-resolution X-ray, spectroscopy and histology showed absence of SEBS calcification, while gel permeation chromatography confirmed no SEBS degradation at 6 months. At histology, there was no SEBS-related calcification, thrombosis, cytotoxic or neoplastic degeneration, and no damage of the cardiac and downwards organs. Blood testing showed no haemolysis, while clinical pathology and animal health remained within normal reference intervals. The function of the research-grade mitral prototypes was clinically acceptable. The use of heparin-coating did not add benefit.

CONCLUSIONS

This preclinical in vivo study in juvenile sheep confirms the 6-month safety of SEBS29/SEBS20 material used to make cardiac valves. A future early feasibility study is warranted to confirm long-term durability, haemocompatibility, and function in humans.