Development of new surgical mesh geometries with different mechanical properties using the design freedom of 3D printing

Abstract

AbstractThe emergence of new rapid prototyping techniques such as melt electrowriting and their application in the development of medical devices, enables new geometries for surgical meshes that were previously limited by current conventional manufacturing methods. The change in geometry allows a direct impact on the mechanical behavior of surgical meshes using identical polymers. The adaptation of the mechanical properties of surgical meshes, based on sinusoidal auxetic design with varying amplitude and number of waves per total fiber length, aims to improve biocompatibility by mimicking and matching the mechanical properties of vaginal soft tissue, which is not provided by current polypropylene nondegradable meshes. The auxetic design of the meshes can supply dimensionally stable pores under tensile load, which is a limitation of the current meshes. The mechanical properties can be controlled with mesh deformations up to 100%, Young's modulus ranging from 50 to 400 N/mm2 and a variable toe region. The printed meshes show an effective porosity of over 70% and are lightweight or ultra‐lightweight. By combining matching mechanical properties with good porosity and weight, 3D printed sinusoidal meshes, made of biodegradable Poly‐ε‐caprolactone, show promising results to improve surgical meshes for use in pelvic organ prolapse repair.