Polymeric biomaterials are increasingly being used in the medical field to make devices such as stents and catheters. X-radiography is a low-cost and non-invasive technique used to place such devices, requiring them to be composed of radiopaque materials. Most polymeric biomaterials tend to be undetectable by x-ray. Methods to impart radiopacity on polymers without compromising physical and mechanical properties are being researched. In this project a monomer was synthesized that incorporates 3,4,5-triiodobenzoic acid into its structure.  This monomer also contains a norbornene moiety making it capable of ring-opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP).  The iodinated monomer was copolymerized with two other monomers, one containing polyether chains and one containing hydrocarbon chains, to create flexible materials with sufficient radiopacity to be seen on x-ray. By changing the ratio of these monomers, a radiopaque polymer is created with �tunable� properties available for use in medical devices.

Tunable radiopaque polymers

245th National Meeting (2013)

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