Influence of the Young’s Modulus of Polyurethane Implants on the Organism’s Immune Response

Abstract

A series of polyurethanes with low modulus of elasticity for soft tissue implantation was synthesized. Polyurethane samples were implanted into mice for seven days, after which histological studies of capsule formation were carried out. The mechanical properties of polyurethane were found to affect the organism’s immune response at sites close to implants at which specific conditions concentrating biomechanical stress in tissues, particularly around the ends of polyurethane films, occur. Softer polyurethane with a modulus of elasticity close to the modulus of elasticity of tissues produced essentially no reaction to biomechanical stress, though reactions to the foreign surface of the implant remained.