Fiber-hydrogel composite surgical meshes for tissue repair

A method for manufacturing a surgical scaffold device comprising a laminar scaffold complex, the method comprising the steps of:

• a. mixing a hydrogel material with the polymeric fibers in the presence of an effective amount of a crosslinking moiety to form the scaffold complex, wherein at least a portion of the polymeric fibers are cross-linked to the hydrogel material,
• b. providing the scaffold complex comprising polymeric fibers oriented to comprise a plurality of pores,
• c. configuring the scaffold complex in a geometry suitable for implantation in an organ or tissue selected from skin, fascia, pleura, dura, pericardium, paratenon, periosteum, perineurium, blood vessel wall, and lymphatic wall;
• and
• d. configuring the scaffold complex as a sheet having a first dimension and a second dimension independently at least five times as great in length as a third dimension;
• whereby a surgical scaffold device is manufactured,
• wherein the polymeric fibers comprise functional groups, wherein the surface density of the functional groups is from about 10 nmole/mg of fibers to about 160 nmole/mg of the fibers,
• wherein the polymeric fibers comprise a mean diameter of from about 100 nm to about 8000 nm and a mean length of less than about 500 micrometers.

A method for manufacturing a surgical device comprising a laminar scaffold complex and a surgical mesh material, the method comprising the steps of:

• a. mixing a hydrogel material with the polymeric fibers in the presence of an effective amount of a crosslinking moiety to form the scaffold complex, wherein at least a portion of the polymeric fibers are cross-linked to the hydrogel material,
• b. providing a scaffold complex comprising polymeric fibers oriented to comprise a plurality of pores,
• c. configuring the scaffold complex in a geometry suitable for implantation in an organ or tissue selected from skin, fascia, pleura, dura, pericardium, paratenon, periosteum, perineurium, blood vessel wall, and lymphatic wall;
• d. configuring the scaffold complex as a sheet having a first dimension and a second dimension independently at least five times as great in length as a third dimension;
• and
• e. covalently linking a surgical mesh material to the laminar scaffold complex wherein the surgical mesh material is disposed over all or portion of the laminar scaffold complex,
• whereby a surgical device is manufactured,
• wherein the polymeric fibers comprise functional groups, wherein the surface density of the functional groups is from about 10 nmole/mg of fibers to about 160 nmole/mg of the fibers, and wherein the polymeric fibers comprise a mean diameter of from about 100 nm to about 8000 nm and a mean length of less than about 500 micrometers.