b2815 Tissue Engineering and Nanotheranostics “9.61x6.69”
44 Tissue Engineering and Nanotheranostics
An established degradation profile is of prime importance for fetal
patches as well, for the ones made from biodegradable materials. Even
in case of inert implants, studying the in vitro degradation is extremely
critical, owing to the effect of monomer leaching and surface erosion
on biocompatibility and toxicity.
3. Conclusions and Future Work
From the literature review section, it is evident that there has been
considerable research done on characterization of surgical patches and
meshes used in abdominal and cardiac domains. Many patch materials
have hydrophobic surfaces, which might lead to inflammatory reac-
tions in the body, and this hurdle needs to be overcome by using
hydrophilic coatings.10,22 There was no literature on surface energy of
patches, measured by contact angle tests, which could determine the
nature and chemistry of the surface. The mechanical characterization
also has numerous limitations since no research article encompasses
all the properties that need to be considered for selection of a mesh,
namely the anisotropy, elongation, strain, stiffness, dynamic creep,
and modulus. Evidence of in vivo oxidation is supported by morphol-
ogy and thermal studies, but no literature presents Fourier transform
infrared spectroscopy data about the chemical species on the surface.^23
Degradation studies are limited to few weeks,21,24 and do not simulate
actual times of implantation and only focus on molecular weight deg-
radation of the polymer over time, but ignores the degradation of
mechanical and thermal properties. These additional tests need to be
carried out for surgical implants, and also need to be carefully modi-
fied and implemented for fetal surgery implants.
There exists a grave necessity to carry out relevant tests to charac-
terize fetal surgery implants, to encompass the specific requirements
for the physiological environment and simulate the conditions the
implant would be subjected in vivo. For example, we need to carry
out studies on monomer leaching over successive time points to assess
if the implant chemically reacts with physiological components
to release toxic substances. These studies can be conducted by
liquid chromatography-mass spectroscopy tests, or in vitro transwell
