Polymers for biomedical applications

Development of a reliable production method for nerve guides.

Nerve guides, developed by Prof. Feijen of the University of Twente, are preferably made of biodegradable polymer. Once implanted, the nerve guide is gradually broken down by the surrounding tissue. The nerve guides are innovatively spun in vitro and shaped to ensure they are sufficiently resistant to bending and tearing.
The method used to produce these nerve guides was time consuming, difficult to reproduce and unreliable. Artecs has developed a faster and more reliable method of producing nerve guides.
Nerve guides produced using the Artecs method have recently been tested on rats.