The regulatory ancestral network of surgical meshes.

Background: All surgical meshes entering the U.S. market have been cleared for clinical use by the 510(k) process of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), in which devices simply require proof of "substantial equivalence" to predicate devices, without the need for clinical trials.

Characterizing the macro and micro mechanical properties of scaffolds for rotator cuff repair.

Background: Retearing after rotator cuff surgery is a major clinical problem. Numerous scaffolds are being used to try to reduce retear rates. However, few have demonstrated clinical efficacy.

Effect of annealing on the mechanical properties and the degradation of electrospun polydioxanone filaments.

Annealing, or heat treatment, has traditionally been used as a treatment to improve the strength and stiffness of electrospun materials. Understanding the extent to which annealing can improve the mechanical properties and alter the degradation rate of electrospun polydioxanone filaments could influence the range of its potential clinical applications. In this study, we investigated the effect of annealing electrospun polydioxanone filaments at varying times and temperatures and subsequently subjecting them to in vitro degradation in phosphate buffer saline for up to 6 weeks.

An in vitro scratch tendon tissue injury model: effects of high frequency low magnitude loading.

The healing process of ruptured tendons is suboptimal, taking months to achieve tissue with inferior properties to healthy tendon. Mechanical loading has been shown to positively influence tendon healing. However, high frequency low magnitude (HFLM) loads, which have shown promise in maintaining healthy tendon properties, have not been studied with in vitro injury models.

Fabrication of continuous electrospun filaments with potential for use as medical fibres.

Soft tissue injuries represent a substantial and growing social and economic burden. Medical fibres are commonly used to repair these injuries during surgery. Patient's outcomes are, however, not promising with around 40% of surgical repairs failing within the first few months after surgery due to poor tissue regeneration.