Biodegradable Polymer Composition for Dental Membranes
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Solution Overview
Problem
Biodegradable polymers used in medical implants, such as dental membranes, are difficult to manipulate at room temperature due to their rigid and brittle nature, and incorporating biologically active agents like collagen poses challenges due to high processing temperatures and potential cytotoxicity concerns.
Innovation Solution
Development of biodegradable polymer compositions with specific viscoelastic properties, including a storage modulus between 1000 Pa and 100 MPa, viscosity between 1000 Pa·s and 1 million Pa·s, and a loss modulus to storage modulus ratio between 1 and 30, allowing for chair-side handling and degradation within the body to match tissue healing rates without thermal processing or cytotoxic solvents.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If biodegradable polymers are used for medical implants, then surgical removal is eliminated, but the materials become rigid and difficult to manipulate at room temperature
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the physical state parameter of the polymer from rigid (below glass transition temperature) to flexible (above glass transition temperature) by controlling the temperature during manipulation. The polymer is manipulated at temperatures above its glass transition temperature to achieve flexibility, then sets at lower temperatures to maintain shape, resolving the contradiction between manipulability and structural stability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces dynamic behavior where the polymer's mechanical properties change based on temperature conditions. The material transitions from a rigid state during storage to a flexible state during manipulation, and back to a rigid state after setting. This dynamic property change allows the material to satisfy both ease of manipulation and structural reliability at different stages.
2Ease of manufacture
If high temperature thermal processing is used to process polymers, then the polymer can be molded and shaped, but biologically active agents like collagen and growth factors are degraded
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces thermal processing with solvents or supercritical fluids as the processing medium. These alternative methods allow the polymer to be processed and shaped at lower temperatures that do not degrade biologically active agents, while still achieving the necessary moldability and shaping capability through chemical rather than thermal means.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces solvents or supercritical fluids as intermediary substances that enable processing at lower temperatures. These intermediaries allow the polymer to be molded and shaped without direct thermal exposure, protecting temperature-sensitive biologically active agents while still achieving manufacturability.
3Ease of manufacture
If solvents are used to dissolve polymer components, then the polymer can be processed, but cytotoxicity concerns arise from solvent residues
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs supercritical fluids as a temporary processing medium that can be easily removed after use. The supercritical fluid serves its processing function during manufacturing, then decomposes or evaporates completely, leaving no cytotoxic residues. This approach provides the necessary processing capability while eliminating the harmful effects of traditional solvent residues.
4Reliability
If collagen is used in biodegradable dental membranes, then bioactivity is improved for cell proliferation, but immunogenic reactions and rapid degradation occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a composite material combining synthetic biodegradable polymer with collagen or other bioactive agents. The synthetic polymer provides structural stability and controlled degradation, while the collagen or bioactive agents provide cell proliferation signals. This composite structure allows the material to maintain bioactivity while having tunable, slower degradation rates appropriate for dental applications.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different functional properties to different components: the synthetic polymer matrix provides structural integrity and controlled degradation, while embedded collagen or bioactive agents provide localized cell proliferation signals. This local differentiation of functions allows the material to achieve both sustained presence and biological activity without the drawbacks of pure collagen.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables convenient chair-side handling and degradation of dental membranes, wound healing patches, and hemostasis films at body temperature, ensuring effective tissue regeneration and avoiding the need for surgical removal, while maintaining biocompatibility and bioactivity.
Implementation Method 1
a biodegradable material capable of chair-side handling is desired, which could provide additional handling convenience... degrade through hydrolysis within the body to fit the tissue healing/growth rate
Implementation Method 2
the composition at a temperature of 20° C. to 45° C. has: a) a storage modulus between 1000 Pa and 100 MPa; b) a viscosity between 1000 Pa·s and 1 million Pa·s; and c) a ratio of loss modulus over storage modulus tan δ between 1 and 30
Data Source
AI summary
The present invention is directed to compositions having chair-side handling properties comprising polymers for dental, soft tissue and combination products applications.