Bionic design and performance research of tracheal stent based on shape memory polycaprolactone

Abstract

Trachea injury caused by tracheomalacia, stenosis or atresia can result in severe dyspnea, even asphyxia. With the development of trachea reconstruction technology, trachea stents have become an alternative treatment method. Here, we fabricated a kind of shape memory PCL/Fe3O4 composites (SMPC-PCL) by mixing different weight fractions of benzoyl peroxide and Fe3O4 nanoparticles. The addition of magnetic nanoparticles endowed SMPC-PCL with the capability of remote non-contact actuation, which exhibited unique advantages in minimally invasive implantation and adaptive ability. Further, based on fully observing the unique reticular structure of glass sponges, two types of biomimetics stents were designed and fabricated, and the mechanical properties were thoroughly investigated by experiments and finite element analysis. The minimally invasive implant performance and biological characterization were carried out to evaluate its availability. The excellent mechanical properties, minimally invasive implant performance and biological properties suggest the application potential in tracheal stents.