Vascular grafts: Polymeric materials

Abstract

Cardiovascular disease is one of the major leading causes of death in today's world. Among the most common is atherosclerosis, a thickening of the arterial wall due to the buildup of plaque. When the disease causes complications, due to occlusion of the vessel or arterial wall lesions that ultimately lead to thrombosis, usually a bypass is required to redirect blood flow around the occluded vessel. The preferred vessels for the bypass procedure are autografts, veins, and arteries culled from the patient. When these vessels are not available, due to the natural progression of the disease or prior procedures, synthetic alternatives must be used. These alternatives are created from polymeric materials that can substitute the autografts completely and remain in the patients for years and decades or serve as a temporary substitute that will allow tissue engineering. In this entry we intend to show some of the polymers that are currently being studied, and two in particular that have been in use for over 50 years, that can one day serve the purpose of substituting the autografts completely and provide a better future for patients worldwide.