Research being carried out at the University of Edinburgh could transform the treatment of cardiovascular diseases and increase chances of a successful heart bypass outcome.
It’s all thanks to 3D-printed blood vessels which closely mimic the properties of human veins and if all trials are successful then it could change the surgery.
The strong, flexible, gel-like tubes are created using 3D printing technology and could improve outcomes for heart bypass patients by replacing the human and synthetic veins currently used in surgery to re-route blood flow.
Bypasses are common across Scotland and the UK as a whole and it is a procedure which diverts blood around narrowed or clogged parts of the major arteries to improve blood flow and oxygen supply to the heart.
Read More:
The procedure currently takes a blood vessel from another part of the body – generally the chest, arm or leg – and attaches it to the coronary artery above and below the blocked or narrowed area.
Most people make a recovery after 12 weeks and more than 75 percent of people who undergo the surgery are still alive more than a decade after it takes place.
Experts hope the development of the synthetic vessels could help limit scarring, pain and infection risk associated with the removal of human veins in bypass operations and ensure it is a smoother surgery and recovery from the patient.
The work has been done by a team of researchers led by the School of Engineering at the University of Edinburgh and it’s a two-stage process which used a rotating spindle integrated into a 3D printer to print tubular grafts made from a water-based gel.
They subsequently reinforced the printed graft in a process known as electrospinning, which uses high voltage to draw out very thin nanofibers, coating the artificial blood vessel in biodegradable polyester molecules.
The products could also help alleviate the failure of small synthetic grafts, which can be difficult to integrate into the body.
The 3D graft can be made in thickness from one to 40millimetres in diameter and for a range of applications. It’s flexibility also means it could easily be integrated into the human body, the team behind it at the university says.
Tests also showed the resulting products to be as strong as natural blood vessels and the next stage of the study will involve researching the use of them in animals.
That will be in collaboration with the University of Edinburgh’s Roslin Institute before it is then followed by trials in humans and if it is successful then it could be brought into use and change how cardiovascular issues are treated.
One of those behind the research, Dr Faraz Fazal, believes it opens up a huge range of possibilities moving forward.
He is the lead author of the study and said: “Our hybrid technique opens up new and exciting possibilities for the fabrication of tubular constructs in tissue engineering.”
Dr Norbert Radacsi, of the University of Edinburgh’s School of Engineering and principal investigator, added: “The results from our research address a long-standing challenge in the field of vascular tissue engineering – to produce a conduit that has similar biomechanical properties to that of human veins.
“With continued support and collaboration, the vision of improved treatment options for patients with cardiovascular disease could become a reality.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here