Polypropylene has been extensively utilized as an implantable biomaterial since shortly after it was commercialized in the 1960s. Material characteristics like strength, flexibility, chemical stability, biocompatibility, ease of manipulation, and manufacturability contribute to its ubiquitous use as a biomaterial for applications including hernia repair, pelvic organ prolapse, stress urinary incontinence, and general surgery. Although mesh made from stabilized polypropylene has been a common and successful surgical tool for decades, its widespread use coupled with developments in surgical approaches and materials characterization capabilities has refocused attention onto the in vivo performance of these products. Polypropylene’s hydrocarbon backbone is resistant to hydrolytic and proteolytic degradation; however, the tertiary carbon bond is known to be susceptible ex vivo to oxidation under specific conditions. Various groups have documented an observable ‘crust’ by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) after explantation of polypropylene mesh, sometimes hypothesizing that the crust is degraded polypropylene that is evidence of in vivo oxidation. This presentation will focus on chemical, physical, and thermal characterization of non-oxidized, intentionally oxidized, and explanted polypropylene in a comprehensive approach to assess and demonstrate the oxidative stability of polypropylene meshes for in vivo use.

Oxidative stability of polypropylene for biomedical applications

2019 Spring National Meeting

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