Design, Characterization, and 3D Printing of Cardiovascular Stents with Zero Poisson's Ratio in Longitudinal Deformation

Inherent drawbacks associated with drug-eluting stents have prompted the development of bioresorbable cardiovascular stents. Additive manufacturing (3-dimentional (3D) printing) has been widely applied in medical devices. In this study, we develop a novel screw extrusion-based 3D printing system with a new designed mini-screw extruder to fabricate stents. A stent with a zero Poisson's ratio (ZPR) structure is designed, and a preliminary monofilament test is conducted to investigate appropriate fabrication parameters. 3D-printed stents with different geometric structures are fabricated and analyzed by observation of the surface morphology. An evaluation of the mechanical properties and a preliminary biological evaluation of 3D-printed stents with different parameters are carried out. In conclusion, the screw extrusion-based 3D printing system shows potential for customizable stent fabrication. (C) 2021 THE AUTHORS. Published by Elsevier LTD on behalf of Chinese Academy of Engineering and Higher Education Press Limited Company.

Automated summary

In this study, a screw extrusion-based 3D printing system was developed for stent fabrication and testing. The results showed the potential of this system for customizable stent fabrication.