Digital light 3D printing of customized bioresorbable airway stents with elastomeric properties.

Nevena Paunović,Nicole Kleger,Ahmad Rafsanjani,Jean-Christophe Leroux,Jasmin Cadalbert,Kunal Masania,Peter W Kronen,Daniel Franzen,Brigitte Von Rechenberg,Yinyin Bao,Davide Brambilla,Anna Karoline Geks,Karina Klein,Fergal Brian Coulter,André R Studart,Zhi Luo,Fabienne Rüber,Agnieszka Karol

doi:10.1126/sciadv.abe9499

Abstract

Central airway obstruction is a life-threatening disorder causing a high physical and psychological burden to patients. Standard-of-care airway stents are silicone tubes, which provide immediate relief but are prone to migration. Thus, they require additional surgeries to be removed, which may cause tissue damage. Customized bioresorbable airway stents produced by 3D printing would be highly needed in the management of this disorder. However, biocompatible and biodegradable materials for 3D printing of elastic medical implants are still lacking. Here, we report dual-polymer photoinks for digital light 3D printing of customized and bioresorbable airway stents. These stents exhibit tunable elastomeric properties with suitable biodegradability. In vivo study in healthy rabbits confirmed biocompatibility and showed that the stents stayed in place for 7 weeks after which they became radiographically invisible. This work opens promising perspectives for the rapid manufacturing of the customized medical devices for which high precision, elasticity, and degradability are sought.

Highlights

Central airway obstruction (CAO) is a stenosis of the trachea or mainstem bronchi that causes impaired air flow and has immense impact on morbidity and mortality [1, 2]
It is of prime importance that the bioresorbable stents maintain their mechanical properties during the treatment, especially at the early stage after the insertion
The gold-loaded stents based on the optimal dual-polymer resin of high- and low-molecular weight (MW) poly(DLLAco-CL) methacrylate in weight ratio of 75/25 preserved sufficient mechanical force to generally stay at the place of the insertion for 7 weeks

Summary

Introduction

Central airway obstruction (CAO) is a stenosis of the trachea or mainstem bronchi that causes impaired air flow and has immense impact on morbidity and mortality [1, 2]. The commercial silicone stents are simple tubes associated with a high risk of migration due to geometrical mismatching with the complex tracheobronchial anatomy of the individual patient [1, 3]. This is especially noticeable in pediatric patients who need additional interventions for stent removal or replacement due to the airway growth, which may cause further tissue damage [1, 4]. There is an unmet medical need for affordable patient-specific bioresorbable airway stents that can be manufactured in a reasonable time frame [1, 3]. Conventional manufacturing technologies of airway stents make personalization expensive and time-consuming [5]

Methods

Results

Conclusion