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US 2023/0144510 A1Published application
Joining Element
AssigneeDePuy Synthes Products, Inc.
InventorsJoerg Mayer, Jochen Ganz, Beat Keller, Ralph Hertel
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Disclosed is a joining element (10), especially a suture material for surgical use. The joining element (10) is composed of a first material (12) that is essentially rigid during impingement by a relatively short-lasting tensile load on opposite sides as well as a second material (11) which is connected to the first material. The second material is substantially rigid during impingement by said tensile load on opposite sides while contracting slowly during a second period of time that is longer than the first period of time.
Claims10
A joining element comprising:
- a core having a length that extends along a longitudinal direction, the core comprising a polymer material and an osmotically active substance distributed within the polymer material, wherein the core has a volume capable of swelling along a transverse direction that is perpindicular to the longitudinal direction upon exposure to a fluid;
- and,
- a diffusion-controlling extendable membrane that surrounds at least a portion of the length of the core, wherein the membrane is configured to regulate hydration of the core by the fluid, and is further configured to expand along the transverse direction in response to swelling of the core.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.