Composite hernia mesh production and characterization

Hernia repair is the most common surgical operations applied all over the world. The first option in hernia therapy is the surgical operation. If there exist insufficient amount of healthy tissue or the size of the defect is large, mesh prostheses are used to support weakened or the damaged tissue. Using mesh substantially decrease the risk of hernia recurrence. Hence, it is an effective method for therapy of hernia and abdominal wall defect. However, patches currently used in the clinic applications have significant short-term and long-term risks. For this reason, the search for the ideal mesh still continues today. And therefore, studies on composite hernia meshes, which combine materials with different advantages, have been increasing recently. Within the scope of the presented study, it was aimed to produce an ideal hernia mesh. For this purpose, the design, production, and characterization of a three-layered semi-resorbable composite hernia mesh was described. Chlorinated Polypropylene (PP-Cl), Polycaprolactone (PCL) and Polyethylene glycol (PEG) polymers and H. perforatum oil were used in the mesh structure. In the three-layered semi-resorbable composite hernia mesh, all layers were produced by electrospinning technique, and the upper layer (parietal side) was non-resorbable, the middle layer was partially resorbable, and the lower layer (visceral side) was fully resorbable. The upper layer composed of electrospun PP-Cl fibers, the middle layer composed of counter-electrospun (double electrospinning) interwoven PP-Cl and PCL fibers, and the lower layer composed of counter-electrospun PCL and oil-containing PEG fibers. Some characteristics of the meshes produced within the scope of the study such as, chemical structure (FTIR), surface morphology (SEM), density, porosity, wettability (% Swelling ratios), hydrophilic/hydrophobic properties (contact angle measurements), time-dependent mass loss, release profile of herbal oil from the mesh, and mechanical strength (elasticity) were determined by performing various in-vitro characterization studies and patch performance was evaluated. As a result of in-vitro characterization studies; it is thought that the composite hernia meshes produced have the potential to be used in in-vivo biomedical applications and will support the search for an ideal hernia mesh that can be used in the treatment of abdominal hernias.