New Surface Modification Technology Developed

A new technology makes it possible to coat the surfaces of medical devices, including catheter lumens and odd-shaped geometries, without the use of plasma, gamma, or UV radiation.

Developed by STS Biopolymers (Henrietta, NY), the Graft-Coat reversed-phase graft polymerization technology allows a variety of polymer layers to be permanently bonded to even difficult-to-coat polymer surfaces.

"The major advantage of Graft-Coat surface modification is the chemistry of attaching free radicals to a substrate which allows monomers to covalently bond and polymerize onto the surface within an aqueous medium to create the desired polymer surface," said Richard Whitbourne, chairman of STS Biopolymers.

The surface modification can permanently adhere to most polymer surfaces, particularly inert substrates such as silicone, latex, polyethylene, and fluoropolymers like Teflon. The technology can provide a variety of surface properties including increased hydrophilicity, wet and dry lubricity, controlled drug delivery, and surface functionality. The process is easily scaled up and applicable to coating high-volume, commodity items.

Other available coatings include Glide-Coat and Slip-Coat ultra-slippery lubricious coatings, Medi-Coat drug-delivery coatings, as well as Echo-Coat enhanced echogenic coatings. Services include plasma pretreating, coating application, and development of custom coating technologies. All services and products comply with FDA QSR and ISO 9001/EN46001 requirements and are available for medical devices under license.

For more information, contact Doug Jones, account manager of STS Biopolymers, at 716-321-1130, or via e-mail at djones@stsbiopolymers.com.

Edited by Ursula Jones