Bioabsorbable Staples
SPRING 2022 MAE 156B SPONSORED PROJECT
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO
SPONSORED BY DR. ANDREW VAHABZADEH-HAGH
SPRING 2022 MAE 156B SPONSORED PROJECT
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO
SPONSORED BY DR. ANDREW VAHABZADEH-HAGH
In the medical field, sutures and metal staples have been used for wound and incision closure after surgery, however, both of these methods have limitations in regards to the areas of application and efficiency. During laryngeal surgical procedures, a laryngoscope is inserted into the patient's throat and surgical tools are placed through it for the examination of the larynx and surgery in order to avoid external incisions. The method of deploying staples with an endoscopic stapler is superior to the usage of sutures. While metal staples are easier and faster to apply and can operate in smaller spaces, the metal is more likely to increase the risk of infection and requires the patient to return for the removal process which may also lead to further complications. With bioabsorbable staples we hope to reduce patient’s hospital time, improve healing with less risk of infection, and minimize the amount of scarring.
The main objective of our project is to design bioabsorbable staples that are to be used for healing internal incisions in the throat. The staple design should provide enough tension to close the wound and with the proper material choice(s), degrade after approximately 4-6 weeks. The staple must be optimized so that its geometry can increase the staple to skin interaction, gathering more tissue and reducing clearance, while the exposed surface area is increased to reach a desirable degradation time. They are to be used on mucosa and should not create any risk of infection or impede the healing process.
The final design consists of three main components that serve as modifications to an endoscopic stapler for proper deployment. This includes the rigid U-shape staples, needles for insertion, and the tissue recruitment arms.
Rigid U-Shape Staple made from Dioxaprene. Barbs on the ends prevent removal.
Needles designed to first pierce the tissue for proper staple insertion.
The recruitment arm is activated by a linear trigger to be used by the index finger that extends and retracts the V-shape spring.
Testing was conducted on chicken breast to simulate the texture of mucosa. The bioabsorbable staples were successfully deployed and provided sufficient rigidity to close incision sites created on the chicken breast.