EP0248247B1
Expired / Lapsed
EP
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Vascular graft wall
Assignee: Sulzer AG
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Filing: 1987-05-15
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Granted: 1992-01-22
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Expires: 2007-05-15
Abstract
Abstract The arterial vessel is made of a microporous membrane having pores which are filled with a permeable gel or which are closed over by a thin porous layer. A monolayer of endothelial cells is provided on the internal surface for exposure to the blood flow and smooth muscle cells are layered on the outer surface for increasing the viability of the live cells on the membrane and to impart elasticity. A support structure formed of a braided construction of monofilaments of inert material can be provided to limit dilation of the vessel.
Inventors
- 👤 Marko Prof. Dr. Turina
- 👤 Peter Dr. Bittmann
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-24 15:13
CPC Classifications
A; A61; A61F; A61F2/00; A61F2/02; A61F2/04; A61F2/06; A61F2/062; A61L; A61L27/00; A61L27/50; A61L27/507
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 9
Claim 1
Independent Claim
128 words
An artificial vessel wall, more particularly for arterial vessels of less than 7 mm internal diameter, the wall comprising a permeable membrane (1) which is made of a bio-inert plastic and which is formed with continuously open micropores (2), characterised in that the membrane (1) is so smoothed at least on its surface on the blood flow side that its permeability remains at least to some extent but a closed monolayer of endothelial cells (3) grows and the membrane is covered on the blood flow side with a single layer of endothelial cells, the micropores (2) being filled with an aqueous gel (4) to smooth the membrane surface, such gel being permeable for molecules having a molecular weight of up to 100 000 u (atomic mass units (Dalton)).
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
129 words
An artificial vessel wall, more particularly for arterial vessels of less than 7 mm internal diameter, the wall comprising a permeable membrane (1) which is made of a bio-inert plastic and which is formed with continuously open micropores (2), characterised in that the membrane (1) is so smoothed at least on its surface on the blood flow side that its permeability remains at least to some extent but a closed monolayer of endothelial cells (3) grows and the membrane is covered on the blood flow side with a single layer of endothelial cells, and the micropore surfaces on the blood flow side are closed by a porous layer (8) in which the diameter of the pores (9) is comparable at least approximately to the dimensions of endothelial cells (3).
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
31 words
A vessel wall according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the outside surface of the membrane (1) is coated with smooth muscle cells (SMC) (6) which produce elastic fibres.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
26 words
A vessel wall according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the plastic membrane (1) is made of a 0.1 to 1 mm thick polyurethane.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
30 words
A vessel wall according to claim 1, characterised in that the diameters of the micropores (2) are at least to some extent between 10 and 50 µm, preferably 30 µm.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
27 words
A vessel wall according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the stretch of the membrane (1) is limited by means of a support structure (7).
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
51 words
A vessel wall according to claim 6, characterised in that in response to an internal pressure of from 1 to 2 · 10⁴ Pa (80 to 150 mm Hg) the linear stretch of the membrane (1) is from 0.04 to 0.13% per 100 Pa (0.03 to 0.1%/mm Hg) of pressure increase.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
30 words
A vessel wall according to claim 6 or 7, characterised in that the support structure (7) consists of a textile fabric having a mesh size between 0.2 and 2 mm.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
32 words
A vessel wall according to claim 9, characterised in that the support structure (7) consists of a braiding of discrete spiral filaments of polyester threads of from 10 to 40 µm diameter.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
No citation records indexed.
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