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Replacing defective heart valves with artificial valves has been carried out successfully for many years, giving patients longer and more active lives, but there are some drawbacks. With valves made from metal and treated carbon, the patient needs to take drugs to prevent blood clots, while other valves made from pig tissue aren't as durable.
But now a new type of polymer, or plastic, developed by Dr Gunatillake and his research team at CSIRO, can make valves which don't need anticoagulant drugs and which are expected to last between twenty and twenty-five years.
"Unlike the conventional polyurethane, these materials are designed to have long-term stability inside the body. That means the materials would not undergo degradation while it is inside the body."
The new material was developed, by combining high amounts of silicone with polyurethane, two materials not normally compatible. However after many years of research a way was found to overcome the problem and the new durable, tear resistant polymer was developed. It can be processed into almost any shape, making it just right for producing heart valves.
The company AorTech is producing the heart valves and next year it's hoped that human trials will begin.
"It's difficult to predict the long-term stability in the human environment but the valves have tested in what is called the valve simulator. They have exceeded about a billion cycles, and that's roughly about twenty years of life inside the patient."
The new material will also eventually be used in a range of other products such as coronary arterial grafts, orthopedic implants and wound dressings. It's hoped the heart valves will be readily available within three to five years.
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For more information on Synthetic Heart Valves please contact: |
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Dr. Thilak.Gunatillake CSIRO Molecular Science Private Bag 10 Clayton VIC 3169 Thilak.Gunatillake@csiro.au |
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This site is optimised for browsers that support tables. Updated 20 September 2005 |