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AssigneeEthicon, Inc.
InventorsMargaret D'Aversa, Howard L. Scalzo, Jr., Dennis D. Jamiolkowski, Rao S. Bezwada, Donald G. Hill, Alastair W. Hunter
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The present invention discloses a process for producing a braided suture having an improved knot strength comprising heating a braided suture coated with a low molecular weight biocompatible polymer to a temperature sufficient to melt the low molecular weight biocompatible polymer for a time sufficient to allow the low molecular polymer to be redistributed into the interstices of the braided suture thereby providing a coated braided suture with an improved knot tensile strength. Also disclosed is the coated braided suture having a low molecular weight polymer optimally dispersed throughout the braided suture's cross-section.
A process for producing a braided suture having an improved knot strength comprising coating a braided suture with a biocompatible polymer to produce a coated braided suture and heating the coated braided suture to a temperature sufficient to allow the biocompatible polymer to flow for a time ranging a from 20 minutes to 72 hours to allow the polymer to be redistributed into the interstices of the braided suture thereby providing a coated braided suture with an improved knot tensile strength.
The process of claim wherein the absorbable suture is a homopolymer or copolymer of a monomer selected from the group consisting of glycolide, lactide, 1,4-dioxan-2-one, trimethylene carlionate, δ-valerolactone, ε-caprolactone, 1,4-dioxepan-2-one, 1,5-dioxepan-2-one, alkyl substituted derivatives of these compounds, cyclic dimers of these compounds and combinations of two or more thereof.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.