Prosthetics

Claim 1

A PROSTHETIC DEVICE HAVING A SHAPE SUITABLE FOR INDERTION INTO A HUMAN OR ANIMAL BODY TO REPLACE A PART THEREOF, SAID DEVICE HAVING AT LEAST PART OF THE SURFACE THEREOF MADE OF A PLASTIC, WATER-STABLE, NONTOXIC MATERIAL HAVING A SURFACE ENERGY IN THE RANGE 50 ERG CM-2 TO 100 ERG CM-2 WHEREBY SAID DEVICE IS CAPABLE OF BEING BONDED MORE STRONGLY TO COLLAGENOUS BODY TISSUE THAN CORRESPONDING DEVICES WHICH DO NOT HAVE SUCH A SURFACE ENERGY, SAID PLASTIC MATERIAL BEING A COPOLYMER OF POLY(ETHYLENE GLYCOL) AND BIS(B-HYDROXYLETHYL)TEREPHTHALATE, THE COPOLYMER COMPRISING AT LEAST 10 PERCENT BY WEIGHT OF UNITS HAVING THE STRUCTURE CH2-CH2-0- AND NO MORE THAN 95 PERCENT BY WEIGHT OF SAID UNITS AND HAVING A REDUCED VISCOSITY MEASURED ON A 1 PERCENT WEIGHT/VOLUME SOLUTION IN O-CHLOROPHENOL AT 25*C IN THE RANGE 0.4 DL.G-1 TO 2.0 DL.G-1, WHEREIN SAID POLYMERIC MATERIAL BEING STABLE IN WATER TO THE EXTENT THAT A FILM OF THE MATERIAL 0.5 MM THICK WHICH HAS BEEN IMMERSED IN WATER AT 37*C FOR 24 HOURS DOES NOT BREAK WHEN FLEXED THROUGH 180*.