Abstract
Isocyanate-terminated adhesive amphiphilic block copolymers are attractive materials to treat meniscus tears due to their tuneable mechanical properties and good adhesive characteristics. However, a drawback of this class of materials is their relatively long curing time. In this study, we evaluate the use of an amine cross-linker and addition of catalysts as two strategies to accelerate the curing rates of a recently developed biodegradable reactive isocyanate-terminated hyper-branched adhesive block copolymer prepared from polyethylene glycol (PEG), trimethylene carbonate, citric acid and hexamethylene diisocyanate. The curing kinetics of the hyper-branched adhesive alone and in combination with different concentrations of spermidine solutions, and after addition of 2,2-dimorpholinodiethylether (DMDEE) or 1,4-diazabicyclo [2.2.2] octane (DABCO) were determined using FTIR. Additionally, lap-shear adhesion tests using all compositions at various time points were performed. The two most promising compositions of the fast curing adhesives were evaluated in a meniscus bucket handle lesion model and their performance was compared with that of fibrin glue. The results showed that addition of both spermidine and catalysts to the adhesive copolymer can accelerate the curing rate and that firm adhesion can already be achieved after 2 h. The adhesive strength to meniscus tissue of 3.2–3.7 N was considerably higher for the newly developed compositions than for fibrin glue (0.3 N). The proposed combination of an adhesive component and a cross-linking component or catalyst is a promising way to accelerate curing rates of isocyanate-terminated tissue adhesives.
Highlights
Traumatic meniscal tears are common injuries of the knee
We have recently developed a series of isocyanateterminated amphiphilic block copolymers for the repair of meniscal tears [12, 13]
The curing kinetics of the hyper-branched adhesive component and those of the hyper-branched adhesive component after mixing with a cross-linking component and a catalyst were determined by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) spectroscopy
Summary
Traumatic meniscal tears are common injuries of the knee. They result in pain, swelling and locking of the knee joint, and may eventually result in the development of osteoarthritis [1]. Tissue adhesives are attractive biomaterials to be used for treating meniscus tears [4] They are already employed in clinical practice for various applications. Cyanoacrylates are used clinically for gluing skin lacerations, fibrin glue for pulmonary leaks and repair of cardiovascular defects, and TissueGlu® for abdominoplasty [5,6,7]. These materials are not suitable for the repair of meniscal tears either due to their cytoxicity or their insufficient mechanical- and adhesive properties. There is a growing interest in the development of new tissue adhesives, which are strong, non-toxic, biodegradable and fast-curing
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