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Review
. 2022 Mar 9;14(6):1099.
doi: 10.3390/polym14061099.

3D Printing of Polymeric Bioresorbable Stents: A Strategy to Improve Both Cellular Compatibility and Mechanical Properties

Ana M Sousa  1 , Ana M Amaro  1 , Ana P Piedade  1
Affiliations
Review

3D Printing of Polymeric Bioresorbable Stents: A Strategy to Improve Both Cellular Compatibility and Mechanical Properties

Ana M Sousa et al. Polymers (Basel). .

Abstract

One of the leading causes of death is cardiovascular disease, and the most common cardiovascular disease is coronary artery disease. Percutaneous coronary intervention and vascular stents have emerged as a solution to treat coronary artery disease. Nowadays, several types of vascular stents share the same purpose: to reduce the percentage of restenosis, thrombosis, and neointimal hyperplasia and supply mechanical support to the blood vessels. Despite the numerous efforts to create an ideal stent, there is no coronary stent that simultaneously presents the appropriate cellular compatibility and mechanical properties to avoid stent collapse and failure. One of the emerging approaches to solve these problems is improving the mechanical performance of polymeric bioresorbable stents produced through additive manufacturing. Although there have been numerous studies in this field, normalized control parameters for 3D-printed polymeric vascular stents fabrication are absent. The present paper aims to present an overview of the current types of stents and the main polymeric materials used to fabricate the bioresorbable vascular stents. Furthermore, a detailed description of the printing parameters' influence on the mechanical performance and degradation profile of polymeric bioresorbable stents is presented.

Keywords: 3D printing; degradation; mechanical properties; polymers; vascular stents.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Coronary artery disease: scheme of atherosclerosis progression leading to myocardial infarction (Created in BioRender.com).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Schematic representation of the in vitro degradation of vascular stents.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Relationship between polymer properties and degradation of postimplanted BRSs.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Comparison between bioresorbable stents and permanent metallic-based stents.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Routes of poly(lactic acid) (PLA) synthesis from lactic acid [53].
Figure 6
Figure 6
PLA biodegradation path.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Biodegradation process of PGA.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Chemical structure of the cyclic dimers and the copolymerization reaction (ROP) [65].
Figure 9
Figure 9
Scheme of the synthesis of PCL from ε-CL and hydroxyhexanoic acid. Reprinted with permission from Elsevier [67].
Figure 10
Figure 10
Biodegradation process of PCL.
Figure 11
Figure 11
Schematic representation of some FFF printing parameters: (A) layer thickness; (B) air gap, raster orientation, and raster width; (C) examples of raster angles.
Figure 12
Figure 12
Build orientation.
Figure 13
Figure 13
Examples of infill patterns and percentages.
Figure 14
Figure 14
Schematic representation of the building orientation of 3D-printed vascular stents.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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