Hybrid surgical adhesives

Abstract

Surgical adhesives are a popular substitute for conventional wound closure techniques including sutures and staples. These adhesives provide several benefits, including reduced operative time, better cosmetic results, and lower risk of infection and chronic inflammation at the wound site. The mechanical properties of surgical adhesives are crucial to their effectiveness as they must firmly adhere to tissues while remaining flexible to permit tissue mobility. However, the wide variety of tissues found in the human body, each of which has distinctive mechanical properties, chemical compositions, and surface topographies, presents a difficulty for adhesion. Therefore, various methods to modify the mechanical properties have been an important topic of research to resolve this conundrum. These strategies involve altering the chemical composition, adjusting the crosslinking density, and incorporating nanomaterials, among others. Therefore, modifying the mechanical properties of surgical adhesives will improve their functionality and versatility, which could result in better patient outcomes. In this research project, a hybrid bioadhesive formulation comprising photo-crosslinkable diazirine-grafted polycaprolactone polyol (CaproGlu) and polyethylene glycol diacrylate (PEGDA) was extensively investigated using UVA light activation (365 nm). Photorheometry measurements were conducted to study the influence of varying concentrations of CaproGlu and PEGDA on the rheological and mechanical properties of resultant bioadhesive films. Additionally, other factors such as molecular weight, the grafting concentration of diazirine groups and incorporating a third polymer component (polyvinyl pyrrolidone) to study any synergistic effect on the rheological, mechanical, and adhesive properties. In summary, photorheometry results revealed enhanced mechanical properties of the hybrid bioadhesive, likely due to increased crosslink density. The peel adhesion strength of hybrid bioadhesives also attained similar strengths to that of neat formulations. However, the hybrid bioadhesive system can be further improved in its adhesive strength to match that of suture fixation strength.