Medtech Week Recap: MHRA Publishes Supporting Information on Testing of Pip Implants

Monday, August 6th, 2012

The UK MHRA and Department of Health have published supporting information used in the 2010 testing of Pip breast implants. As previously announced, the testing found that the material used in the implants doesn't pose a long-term risk to human health.

Nanothin Coating Enables Bone Growth on PEEK Implants

Thursday, May 17th, 2012

The Swedish medical device company Promimic has announced that a new study demonstrates that its nanothin implant coating HAnano Surface enables the implant material PEEK to integrate with bone. PEEK is a popular implant material, but implants made of PEEK typically require a coating to facilitate bone integration. 

Dow Europe Unveils New Formulation and Testing Equipment at Its Performance Plastics Innovation Center

Friday, April 6th, 2012

Dow Europe GmbH has unveiled enhanced formulation and testing capabilities at the Performance Plastics Innovation Center at Dow’s European headquarters in Horgen, Switzerland. The company will hold an open house on 12 April where it will demonstrate the new technology. During the event representatives from Nordson Engineering, Eastman Chemical Company, ...

German Researchers Develop 3-D Printing Method for Nanoscale Applications

Thursday, April 5th, 2012

A new 3-D printing method developed at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) in Germany could enable 3-D printing on the nanoscale, reports an article on the Engineer's website. The method is a variation of another 3-D additive manufacturing technique, two-photon polymerisation (2PP), which can create features in nanometer resolutions, ...

Self-Healing Hydrogel Has Applications in Tissue Adhesives and Drug Delivery

Friday, March 16th, 2012

[caption id="attachment_27312" align="alignleft" width="250" caption="Self-healing hydrogel (purple and yellow colours added)"][/caption] A self-healing hydrogel developed by University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego) bioengineers could have numerous potentials, including drug delivery, medical sutures and industrial sealants. The hydrogel "functions as Velcro on a molecular level" according to the UC San ...

Lubrizol TPU Technology Eliminates Need for Plasticisers

Thursday, February 16th, 2012

Lubrizol introduced a new soft hydrophobic TPU technology at MD&M West Lubrizol introduced a soft hydrophobic thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) technology for medical applications at the trade show MD&M West this week. The technology, part of the Tecothane product line, eliminates the need for plasticisers. The material can be extruded or injection ...

UK Physicians Warned about Silimed Breast Implants

Wednesday, February 1st, 2012

After the Pip implant scandal, breast implants from another manufacturer are now causing cancer fears in Europe, according to an article in the Daily Mail. A senior manager at the UK hospital chain Nuffield Health has warned the chain's leading doctors to avoid offering Silimed implants, manufactured by the German company ...

Medtech Week Recap: New Developments in Plasticisers Could Improve PVC’s Reputation

Monday, November 21st, 2011

Last week, the medical trade fair Medica and the medical manufacturing supplier trade fair Compamed took place, attracting visitors from around the world. At Medica, the German packaging supplier PolyCine introduced a processing technique that blocks migration of plasticisers from PVC. EMDT Editor in Chief Norbert Sparrow spoke with PolyCine's Head ...

Researchers at Uppsala University Develop Smart Materials for Bone Healing

Thursday, November 17th, 2011

A research team at Uppsala University (Uppsala, Sweden) has developed multifunctional surface coatings that enable bone tissue to form in areas were it did not originally exist, according to a university press release. The research is described in a dissertation by Sonya Piskounova. The coatings consist of a layer of hydroxyapatite, ...

PolyOne Exhibits Expanded Portfolio of Colourants at Compamed 2011

Wednesday, November 16th, 2011

PolyOne Corp., a provider of specialised polymer materials, services and solutions, will exhibit a newly expanded portfolio of specialised solutions for the healthcare industry at Compamed 2011. Building on the company’s growing mix of healthcare materials, services and solutions, this portfolio now includes new colourants for its Dow Health+ polymers ...

Graphene “Big Mac” Structure Could Result in New Generation of Computer Chips

Wednesday, October 12th, 2011

[caption id="attachment_25282" align="alignleft" width="162" caption=" Dr Ponomarenko shows his research sample: graphene quantum dots on a chip. Image courtesy: The University of Manchester"][/caption] It's Nobel Prize season, and only a few days after the Nobel Prize Committee announced that this year's prize in Physics would go to astronomers Adam Riess, Brian ...

Biomaterial Could Replace Disfigured Soft Tissue

Tuesday, August 16th, 2011

A new biomaterial developed by researchers at Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, Maryland, United States) could be used to replace disfigured soft tissue in cheeks and lips, for example, according to a Technology Review article. The material is a blend of the biological material hyaluronic acid and the synthetic material polyethylene ...