Medical plastic is bioresistant and biocompatible plastic. Today, plastic is used in prosthetics as well as in device manufacturing or surgery. The individual types range from tartaric acid polymers to silicone resins.
What is medical grade plastic?
The term medical plastic mainly aims at biocompatibility as a property. Today, medical plastics come in different varieties. They are all directly and indirectly compatible with health. The medical use of plastic began in the 20th century. The triumphant advance of plastics began in the 1950s, and by the 1980s the artificially created material had replaced steel as the primary material. Celluloid is the best known and earliest plastic, which served mainly as a substitute for ivory. Even before the plastic revolution, the American Feinbloom was making contact lenses from PMMA plastic. In about the middle of the 20th century, Ridley implanted the first intraocular lens made of PMME. After World War II, plastic also migrated into prosthetics. Cannulas, infusion bags and disposable syringes have also been made of plastic since the 1960s. One of the latest developments revolves around medical plastics in the nanotechnology field. The term medical plastic is mainly aimed at biocompatibility as a property. Today, medical plastics come in different varieties. They are all directly and indirectly compatible with health. Resistance to the biological environment is also among their characteristics.
Forms, types and kinds
Medical plastics are used for implants, solution containers, medical devices, and disposable items such as tips. Plastics score highly in these areas, especially when it comes to hygiene. They enable an even more sterile environment. This is true, for example, of antimicrobial grades of medical plastic. These plastics are a special form of medical plastic. The antimicrobial properties of these grades significantly reduce the risk of infection by germs in the medical field. Today, thermoplastics are made antimicrobial with metal salts or silver ions, for example, and are thus self-acting disinfected. Chemically resistant silicone resins and polyamide, on the other hand, have become established as medical plastics in prosthetics and orthotics because of their health compatibility and stability. Another example of the revolution of plastics in the medical sector is nanotechnology. With the help of this new development, not only coated implants but also antimicrobial surfaces can be produced. Even nanoparticles can be used as carriers for active medical ingredients in the future and thus transport drugs through the human body.
Structure and mode of operation
Several properties are crucial for medical plastics. First and foremost is biocompatibility. Any plastic used for medical purposes must therefore be compatible in direct and indirect contact with the human organism. It must also be resistant to the environment within the organism if it is to be integrated into the body. Chemical resistance is another requirement, since plastics in the medical field come into contact with disinfectants and acids. For prostheses, additional factors play a role. Knee or hip joints made of plastic, for example, must be abrasion-resistant so that they can withstand the high stresses during movement. Today, plastics can be used for straightening purposes, but they can also perform supporting functions in the human body and replace the abdominal wall, for example. Artificially produced materials with a certain stability but also flexibility can also help correct deformities. The functionality of movable parts of the body can be supported and now even restored by specially manufactured plastics. Today, medications are also administered in plastic capsules. These capsules ensure that the active ingredient has a longer shelf life and is not contaminated. In the human body, they dissolve in a precisely defined period of time and release the active ingredients of the drug into the organism. The type of medical plastic thus varies depending on the medical field in which the material is used.The capsules of drugs, for example, are often made of tartaric acid polymers. In contrast, self-dissolving filaments made of plastic are usually made of polylactic acid, a polyester of naturally occurring lactic acid. These filaments decompose enzymatically in a precisely adjustable time.
Health benefits
Without plastic and the processing of this material in medical technology, the current healthcare system would be far from where it is today. Plastic is largely responsible for the fact that hygienic standards can now prevent infections. Apart from that, plastic has ensured the reliability, mobility, compatibility and stability of prostheses, orthoses and epitheses in today’s prosthetics in the first place. The importance of plastics in prosthetics and orthotics today is illustrated by examples such as that of Michael Teuber. When his legs were paralyzed after a traffic accident, he was given orthoses made of polyamide. At the Paralympics, these orthoses helped him onto the winners’ podium. In prosthetics and orthotics, medical plastics score points above all with properties such as their light weight. This means that prosthesis wearers are less restricted in their ability to move than with prostheses made of other materials. In surgery, too, plastics are now irreplaceable instruments for compensating for organic damage. Heart valves, for example, can now be replaced with plastic valves, saving lives. When it comes to medical devices, plastics also have irreplaceable benefits for the medical field and the entire healthcare industry. Equipment such as dialysis machines, for example, would barely function without plastic. In short, modern medicine could not do without medical plastics. A portion of medical progress that should not be underestimated can therefore be attributed to the use of plastics.
